


Hope's Peak's 79th Class - Dossiers and Interviews

by JackTheBard



Series: Hope's Peak 79th Class [1]
Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types
Genre: Fan Characters, Gen, OCs - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-22
Updated: 2017-09-28
Packaged: 2019-01-03 23:13:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 16
Words: 26,579
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12156753
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JackTheBard/pseuds/JackTheBard
Summary: Eight years after the Greatest, Most Despair-inducing Incident in Human History, Hope's Peak is finally opening its doors to a crop of students that were previously slated to join the ranks of the Ultimates until the tragedy happened. These are their final interviews before admission.





	1. The Ultimate Opera Singer: Kaneshiro Marie

**Bio**

**ULTIMATE Opera Singer**  
Name: Kaneshiro Marié  
Age: 24  
Height: 5’6”  
Weight: 133  
Blood Type: A+  
Hair: Black  
Eyes: White  
Likes: Good acoustics, laughter, commentary  
Dislikes: People being too quiet when they approach, losing her cane  
Before Tragedy: Blind from birth, Kaneshiro Marié seemed to be a lost cause to her French father and Japanese mother. However, she quickly showed that she had ears that made up for what her eyes lacked. Because her sense of hearing was so well-developed, she could discern even the subtlest differences in sounds (though not to Daredevil extents of using it for echolocation), and replicate them perfectly. This caused her to become one of the premier sopranos in the Japanese Opera by age thirteen, as well as allowing her to become fluent not only in French and Japanese, but also in Spanish, Italian, English, and German. Her skill in multiple languages and her amazing memory allowed her to memorize almost all of the operatic canon by the age of fifteen. In truth, Hope’s Peak had been scouting her despite her young age, only waiting for a chance to give her an acceptance letter.  
During Tragedy: One of the first things that Marié lost was her cane. Her father went not long after. Stumbling around in the ruins of Tokyo, she had to forage for food using a half-bent piece of rebar, not knowing how long she would survive. Eventually, she was discovered by the Future Foundation, where one of the scouts that had been monitoring her recognized her and the clear tone of her voice. They took her in, nursed her back to health, and eventually convinced her to sing again, allowing her to raise her voice in operas of hope, encouraging her saviors and their soldiers with songs of joy and justice.  
After Tragedy: Incredibly grateful to attend Hope’s Peak, Marié felt a little out of place, spending a few days pacing around the entirety of the massive school until her instructor requested that a GPS be placed in her E-Handbook, allowing her to navigate the school with ease, using the familiar measurement of “Steps” in order to help her get around. Even so, she prefers to keep her cane around for old time’s sake, and because it feels better in her hands than nothing. Naturally, she associates more with the more talkative members of her class, being comfortable around sound, and isn’t afraid to join them for a night of hanging out and karaoke.  
Notable Features: Marié always carries a cane with her, for obvious reasons, and also wears a hoop skirt for a similar issue, generally in a solid, bright pastel color. If someone/something bumps the skirt, she can move out of the way. She also always has one of her E-Handbook’s headphones plugged in because it keeps track of her steps.

 

_Interview 79.01 – Open_  
_Interviewer: Yamada Jiro, Psy.D_  
_Subject: Kaneshiro Marié – “The Ultimate Opera Singer”_  
_Interview Date: April 30th, 8 AT (after Tragedy)_

**Observation**

[The individual in question is a young lady in a pale green dress, almost the color of mint toothpaste. Her black hair is curly, and bound tightly back in a ponytail at the base of her skull. Her skin is pale, belying her French heritage, and her eyes are a milky white, which gives away her blindness, if the cane in her hand did not. She takes her seat cautiously, sweeping the cushion in order to ensure that there is nothing on it that she could potentially sit on. Her gaze is unseeing, vacant, yet directed in the interviewer’s general direction, and she offers a polite smile.]

**Discussion**

Interviewer: Please state your name and age for the record.

Marié: My name is Kaneshiro Marié, and I’m going to be turning 24 on May 2nd.

Interviewer: That’s only two days off. Happy birthday in advance.

Marié: [She gives a broad smile, one that causes her eyes to close. It’s genuine.] Thank you so much! It’s been a long time since I could celebrate it properly.

Interviewer: Thank you for coming in today, Marié. So, before the terrorist event known as “The Tragedy” occurred, you were being scouted by Hope’s Peak Academy. Do you know why?

Marié: I assume that it’s because of my voice. I managed to become the first soprano in the Tokyo Opera by the age of thirteen, and I know that Hope’s Peak representatives had approached me long before that.

Interviewer: Your memory serves you well. So the purpose of this interview is that we would like to extend that opportunity to you once again. We are opening up Hope’s Peak Academy once again, and we would like to offer our previous prospects the opportunity to study and improve their skills around people of their same level of ability once again. Before we begin, should we find your answers satisfactory, would you accept the offer?

Marié: [She pauses for a moment, her hands wringing slightly against one another. Her head bows, and she speaks clearly though her nose is pointed at her knees.] I would take the chance, but I don’t know if it’s appropriate. Is it truly safe to put “hope” out there once again?

Interviewer: We’re opening up Hope’s Peak again in order to show the world that there is still hope to be found among the ashes of despair. We would like you to be part of that hope.

Marié: Then I accept.

Interviewer: Very good. Now, we’ll stay away from the things that occurred during the tragedy, since I know that was a difficult time for you more than any of our other potential students.

Marié: Thank you.

Interviewer: What can you tell us about your hobbies?

Marié: Odd. I was half expecting you to ask me about my voice, and how I came to develop it.

Interviewer: We will ask those questions in due time, particularly during your annual assessments, when we are in a much more formal setting. This is mainly meant to be a bit of a more relaxed interview. Just getting to know you and see if you would be an appropriate addition to the 79th class of Hope’s Peak.

Marié: Oh! [She suddenly straightens up, a bit more attentive. Despite the fact that this is an informal interview, she seems to be taking it rather seriously] With regards to my interests, I like to read in my spare time. It’s very difficult to find books in Braille, but I love each and every one of them. I’ve also taken to listening to books on tape.

Interviewer: I see. Do you have any favorites that you enjoy listening to?

Marié: Oh yes! I particularly enjoy the Harry Potter series, especially the versions read by Stephen Fry. Another one that I like to read is Sun Tzu’s The Art of War.

Interviewer: Those two are on very different ends of the spectrum. Any particular reason why the discrepancy?

Marié: I like how Sun Tzu’s work on war can be translated into philosophy that can be used in everyday life, and how J.K. Rowling’s work can be shown to induce love and compassion in even the bleakest of souls, and how a life without either is devoid of any worth. In the end, Voldemort, who only cared about power, died hopeless and final, surrounded by nobody that cared for him.

Interviewer: That’s very deep. Do you often seek the broader meanings of works in such a way?

Marié: I feel that I have to. Singing opera requires an implicit understanding of the text, not only of the action and emotion that goes into it, but also the story. It’s one thing to have a story described to you, but another to actually read it for yourself.

Interviewer: If memory serves, you have performed operas such as Stravinsky’s take on Oedipus Rex, as well as Weber’s Der Freischütz. Are you saying that you are fluent in languages other than Japanese?

Marié: Yes.

Interviewer: Which ones?

Marié: In addition to Japanese and my father’s native French, I am also fluent in English, Italian, Spanish, German, and Russian.

Interviewer: That’s a rather impressive résumé. And you did that just to learn the stories of the various operas?

Marié: More or less, yes. It also allowed me to communicate more effectively with my fans.

Interviewer: I take it that you had a few fans outside the country?

Marié: Oh, absolutely! They were mostly young girls, much as I was, some of them disabled. They saw me as an inspiration, and my success as a reason for them to strive to be better. If I had to be true with myself, I don’t mind the roses being thrown on the stage as much as I enjoy finding letters with foreign postage in my mail

Interviewer: That’s a very positive way to look at it. Do you see your blindness as a disability?

Marié: I feel like… [She pauses, idly tucking a strand of her hair back behind her ear and tilts her head up once again, face set in grim determination. She’s looking a little to the left of the interviewer, but the intent is the same.] Being able to see would be nice. But I also think that not being able to see is a huge part of who I am. I have learned to experience the world in such a way without sight from birth, and I don’t want to muddle my perception and my art by literally altering the way I view the world.

Interviewer: That’s a very nice way to look at it. I only have one other question for you, if you’re alright with that?

Marié: Of course. Ask away.

Interviewer: What was the most embarrassing moment you ever had on the stage?

Marié: Oh goodness… [Her face is dusted with blush, presumably from the memory, and she speaks slowly when she opens her mouth again] I have to say… the most embarrassing moment was either when I inhaled too deeply and the stitches on my costume came undone as I breathed in, resulting in a wardrobe malfunction later in the scene… or when I forgot the words during Rossini’s The Barber of Seville.

Interviewer: [It should be noted that the interviewer is trying to contain a laugh and almost failing] I see. And how did you overcome each of those?

Marié: The wardrobe malfunction was easy. I was lucky in that I was wearing a shift underneath it, instead of just underwear, and it was at a moment when the character was supposed to be vulnerable, so I felt the dress fall to the ground around me, stepped out of it, and kept singing. The director of the opera said it was overwhelmingly powerful, and that he’s ashamed he didn’t think of it himself.

Interviewer: Good improvisation on your part. And the time when you forgot the words?

Marié: That was a little bit more difficult to recover from. I forgot the words, and I just started singing the names of every kind of pasta that I could remember in place of the words. “Barilla, Linguini, Tortellini”, etc. Even afterwards, the critics claimed that I “had a wonderful understanding of the text and excellent diction”.

Interviewer: [He can’t contain his laugh anymore. He just bursts out laughing] Right. Right… So, thank you, Kaneshiro Marié. It is my pleasure to admit you to Hope’s Peak Academy.

Marié: Thank you! [She’s bouncing in her chair and fumbling with her cane] I can’t wait to tell my mother! Thank you so much!

[She leaves, tapping her cane excitedly along the floor until she leaves the room, then skips down the hallway, clicking her heels together as she jumps up in excitement.]

**End Transcript**


	2. The Ultimate Driver: Fujiyama Yu

**Bio**

**ULTIMATE Driver**  
Name: Fujiyama Yu  
Age: 21  
Height: 5’11”  
Weight: 162  
Blood Type: 0+  
Hair: Blue (no, you shit, it’s not natural)  
Eyes: Violet (yes, you fuck, they are natural)  
Likes: Fast cars, thrumming engines, and really attractive people  
Dislikes: People asking if certain aspects of her are natural or not

Before Tragedy: After showing an aptitude behind the wheel during her first visit to a go-kart track, Fujiyama Yu quickly proved that she couldn’t keep away from the smell of gasoline, nitrous, and burning rubber. It wasn’t long after (at the age of ten) that she stole her first car, and proceeded to lead at least fifteen Tokyo police cars on a mad chase through the streets, as well as through a subway and a shopping mall. Her skill behind the wheel quickly attracted the attention of the Kuzuryu clan. It wasn’t long after she served her juvie sentence that the Kuzuryu family took particular interest in her, and recruited her as a transporter. By the time she was fourteen, she had managed to evade not only the Tokyo police on multiple occasions, but also Interpol in a number of chases.

During Tragedy: When the Kuzuryu family succumbed to the will of the young heir Fuyuhiko and his support of the Despair Sisters, she was a little suspicious. It was when she found out that she was transporting a cargo of live women and children to be executed at the hands of Despair’s lackeys that she realized that she needed to sever ties. She released her “cargo” in a remote location, and still completed her delivery. Instead of a truckload of people, however, the Despair minions serving the Kuzuryu family found only a bloody envelope with the severed tip of her pinky inside. Yu Fujiyama’s parting gift to the Kuzuryu family was not the finger, however, but rather the salute she gave the soldiers. In keeping with Yakuza tradition, she had removed the joint as penance for disgracing her family. It wasn’t long afterwards that she started devoting her skills to the Future Foundation, saving lives rather than delivering them to be taken. 

After Tragedy: Bold in statements and brash in attitude, Yu isn’t afraid to swear or resort to more vulgar language. Despite this, she is willing to get close with her fellow classmates, on account of their willingness to work against the Despairs. Once she settled into Hope’s Peak academy, she was more than willing to enjoy what youth she had left and further develop her skills that had already been honed on the battlefield.

Notable Features: In addition to her unorthodox hair and eye colors, as well as her tremendous height for a woman, many people comment on her commendable… assets. People that do often wind up with at least a bloody nose or a bruised jaw. Furthermore, she has traditional yakuza tattoos running up and down both arms, yet she usually keeps these covered with a form-fitting tracksuit.

_Interview 79.02 – Open_   
_Interviewer: Yamada Jiro, Psy.D_   
_Subject: Fujiyama Yu – “The Ultimate Driver”_   
_Interview Date: May 4th, 8 AT (after tragedy)_

**Observation**

[The subject is female, tall and buxom, yet she carries herself with a sense of aggression rarely seen from women in Japan. For this interview, she has worn a short-sleeved black t-shirt to show off the tattoos running up and down her arms. Her left arm is a mural of a traditionally-styled dragon entwining her arm against a mountain landscape. The head is not visible, disappearing up under the sleeve of her shirt. Her right arm is adorned the archer spirit Susanoo, firing arrows into the sea. She lands in the seat with a resonant “thwump”, her legs spread and her head leaning against her fist, propped up by her elbow on the arm of the chair.]

**Discussion**

Interviwer: Please speak your name and age for the record. 

Yu: Fujiyama Yu. 21.

Interviewer: Thank you for coming in today. You were being scouted by Hope’s Peak Academy before the event known as “The Tragedy” occurred. Do you know why?

Yu: Because I’m fuckin’ good behind the wheel is why.

Interviewer: Can you please expand on that?

Yu: [She leans forward, gritting her teeth as if there was supposed to be a toothpick between them] You scouted me, now you’re askin’ me questions eight years after the fact. Un-fuckin’-believable.

Interviewer: I would care to remind you that you have already been accepted to Hope’s Peak. This interview is just a formality.

Yu: Yeah? Well, I ain’t never been much for formality. You want me to tell you why I’m good behind the wheel? Here’s why. [She starts counting off on her fingers] I managed to talk my way out of countless traffic checkpoints. I’ve evaded Tokyo PD a total of 27 times, Interpol a total of 8, and I only have one mark on my goddamn criminal record from the time I took a joyride at ten. So, if I do say so myself, I’m really fuckin’ good at what I do.

Interviewer: So you just willingly admit to committing a number a total of 35 counts of “evasion of police action”?

Yu: It’s not like you can prove it. I could just be talkin’ out my ass for all you know.

Interviewer: You know we wouldn’t be talking to you if you weren’t.

Yu: [She pauses visibly, then leans forward, her elbows on her knees, her fingers laced together. She presses her index fingers together and points at the interviewer] So what is this for.

Interviewer: Strictly protocol, I assure you. The contents of this video will never be made public, nor private for that matter. It’s something for the executives of the Future Foundation alone, and that is simply to assure them that they have made a good decision with regards to accepting you as a student.

Yu: I’ll hold you to that.

Interviewer: I beg your pardon?

Yu: If I find myself in trouble for any of the contents of the video that’s bein’ recorded right now, I’ll find you myself.

Interviewer: Is that a threat, Ms. Fujiyama?

Yu: It’s a promise.

Interviewer: Duly noted. At the very least, I can admire your conviction.

Yu: You think these tattoos are for show?

Interviewer: Actually, I would like to talk about those. Those are very traditional designs, associated with the Yakuza, are they not?

Yu: Since you assured me that this video was strictly confidential? Yeah. They’re Yakuza tattoos. The Kuzuryu clan picked me up when I was twelve.

Interviewer: I wasn’t aware they started so young.

Yu: You bet your ass they did! Shit, the more loyal enforcers they have, the better. [She leans back and barks out a laugh, reaching into a pocket. She withdraws a pack of cigarettes, pulling one out and sticking it in her mouth. She lights it before she asks the question] Mind if I smoke?

Interviewer: [Slides the ashtray across the table] whatever makes you comfortable, Ms. Fujiyama.

Yu: Fuck me, cut it out with the Mr/Ms stuff! Just call me Yu. Please. It’s a lot less weird. Makes me feel fuckin’ old if you do that.

Interviewer: Very well, Yu. Do you have any idea why the Kuzuryu clan sought you out?

Yu: Aside from leading the Tokyo PD on a 3-hour chase through rush hour streets, followed by approximately seventeen police cars, three helicopters, and probably a tank at some point? All at the age of ten? Christ, man! Are you seriously this dense?

Interviewer: I’m asking you these questions for clarification. Why did you leave the Kuzuryu clan?

Yu: They got icky during the Tragedy.

Interviewer: Care to expand on that?

Yu: [She rests her forehead on her hands, her blue hair splaying about around her fingers. It almost looks like she’s praying. It’s a while before she speaks] I used to run normal shit for the clan. Hidden compartments full of drugs, guns, what have you. Always masked by the usual cargo just in case I got pulled over. Nine times out of ten, it would be meat, to confuse the dogs. But after the Tragedy… the boss started having me run some really weird shit.

Interviewer: Weird how?

Yu: Video equipment. Baking goods. Household chemicals and medicine. Stuff that wasn’t dangerous back then, but dangerous now. Anything could be dangerous when the Tragedy was going on. What with guys like Hanamura Teruteru and Koizumi Mahiru running around. 

Interviewer: What did they have you running when you left?

Yu: Children. Their mothers, too.

Interviewer: Why was that the last straw?

Yu: I’d gotten a pretty fuckin’ good picture of how the clan was working now. Kidnap families, probably those of suspected Future Foundation. Kill them on camera. They always iced the kids first. Made their mothers watch. Anyway, I found out I was hauling folks instead of gear, then let them out halfway to the drop-off point.

Interviewer: And then?

Yu: I went to the drop-off point.

Interviewer: That was tantamount to suicide. Why did you go, even if you didn’t have cargo for them.

Yu: You’re making two mistakes there. The obvious one is that if I didn’t show up, they’d start lookin’ for the “cargo” along the planned route. Second, you’re assuming that the truck was empty.

Interviewer: Care to explain?

Yu: [She holds up her right hand. The first joint of her pinky is missing, severed at the knuckle.] I gave them my letter of resignation.

Interviewer: I don’t quite follow. What’s the significance of giving them your finger?

Yu: If a Yakuza betrays their clan in some way or another, and if it’s a minor transgression, they’re given a chance to atone. The price for atonement is a finger. Tradition says that someone should give up their pinky, and so I did.

Interviewer: I see. It wasn’t long after that that you started working for the Future Foundation, correct?

Yu: Yup. That’s it. Managed to move some damn good people and gear during that time. And I felt good about it too.

Interviewer: Well. That answers all my questions for the time being. Thank you

Yu: Much obliged.

Interviewer: So, I’d like to welcome you to Hope’s Peak Academy. Classes start late in August.

Yu: Seriously? [Despite her gruff demeanor, her face lights up at the notion]

Interviewer: Seriously. See you then.

Yu: Thank you! Thank you so much! [She gets up and leaves briskly, though cameras can see her thrusting her fists up into the air in a victorious stance when she believes that she’s out of sight.]

**End Interview**


	3. The Ultimate Stage Poet: Kurokawa Yanagi

**Bio**

ULTIMATE Spoken Word Poet  
Name: Kurokawa Yanagi  
Age: 23  
Height: 6’1”  
Weight: 232  
Blood Type: AB-  
Hair: Black  
Eyes: Green  
Likes: The stage, beer, being a snarky asshole  
Dislikes: Feeling awkward, night terrors, dull knives

Before Tragedy: Born of a Japanese mother and a father formerly of the American Military, Kurokawa Yanagi grew up as a child of two worlds. In one, he learned of respect, discipline, and love for one’s heritage. The other was his dad’s side of the family. Despite his father’s past with the military, he was a kind man with a love for the arts, and took his son to his first poetry slam in Chicago when Yanagi was ten. When he was eleven, Yanagi took the stage for the first time and managed to wipe the floor with poets that had been competing for years beforehand, using the stage name “Black River”, the approximate translation of his surname (his mother’s maiden name that he kept because it “fit him better” than his father’s last name of “Clifford”). By fourteen, he had managed to participate in three national competitions, taking high-level prizes in each of them. At age fifteen, he was slated to breeze through the highest echelons of the world-class stage poets, and would have easily taken the international championship were it not for the Tragedy.

During Tragedy: Due to his upbringing in both Japan and the United States (as well as fluency in both English and Japanese), Yanagi was familiar with the lay of both lands, as well as their customs. This allowed him to serve as a liaison between the Future Foundation in Japan and their branches in North America. Furthermore, his skill with words allowed him to effectively rile up the Future Foundation troops before a major battle, resulting in massive victories due to his skill with language.

After Tragedy: Kurokawa Yanagi, despite his skill on the stage, still acts like an excitable child when offstage. Even though he has reached international levels of fame, he still grins and says “thank you” so many times over whenever he receives a compliment on his work. His fellow students see that as the only time they see his true personality, because he wears so many layers of masks that it’s hard to get a peek at what he’s really like.

Notable Features: With rare exception, his life alternates between two outfits: Pajamas and Suits. If he’s not wearing a suit jacket and a nice shirt, he’s probably wearing flannel on the lower half of his body.

_Interview 79.03 – Open_   
_Interviewer: Yamada Jiro, Psy.D_   
_Subject: Kurokawa Yanagi – “The Ultimate Stage Poet”_   
_Interview Date: May 7th, 8 AT (after tragedy)_

**Observation**

[The individual in question is male, a shade over six feet, with short black hair that is gelled up into spikes. He wears a pair of thick-rimmed glasses that manage to obscure eyes that are the color of faded dollar bills. The subject lowers himself into his seat and crosses one leg over the other, displaying a pair of beat up Converse All-Stars, a stark contrast to the grey suit jacket and white dress shirt he wears from the waist up.]

**Discussion**

Interviewer: Please state your name and age for the record.

Yanagi: My name is Kurokawa Yanagi, age 23.

Interviewer: And can you tell us why you were being scouted by Hope’s Peak before the tragedy?

Yanagi: I was good at doing the thing with the words.

Interviewer: You have a very strange way of putting it. Is that what you usually call your poetry?

Yanagi: [He shrugs, a little smile playing on his face] I work in metaphor and cadence all the time. Do you think that I want to speak in a perpetual poet’s voice? Everyone needs to cut loose at times, and I cut loose when I’m not on the stage.

Interviewer: There are some that say “all the world is a stage”. How do you feel about that phrase, coming from a performance artist that only shows his skills when he’s standing before an audience?

Yanagi: [He laughs at that] They’re not wrong.

Interviewer: Is that a way of saying that they’re right?

Yanagi: No, it’s a way of saying that what they say holds some truth, but it’s not entirely right.

Interviewer: Interesting. What can you tell me about your family? I understand that you had a rather strange home situation.

Yanagi: Mom was from Okinawa, and my dad was a Major stationed at the American Military Base there. They met, fell in love, and got married, then had me. When Dad had to leave, Mom stayed behind, since she couldn’t leave her family behind, and I stayed with her for a little while. I’d go to school in Okinawa until we moved to Kyoto, and during the long breaks, Mom and I would spend time with dad.

Interviewer: You didn’t take your father’s name?

Yanagi: I did, for a while. But “Yanagi Clifford” sounds a little weird, so I stuck with my mother’s surname after a fashion.

Interviewer: I see. And it was your father that introduced you to stage poetry?

Yanagi: Absolutely. Despite living his life in the military, he was more liberal-minded and loved the arts. He retired when he was in Chicago, and that’s when I saw my first poetry slam. It all went downhill from there.

Interviewer: Could you do a bit of poetry for us? Just drop of a hat?

Yanagi: Certainly. Do you want it in English or Japanese? I managed to translate my works, but I think they sound better in the original tongue.

Interviewer: Japanese, please.

Yanagi: [He sits up straight, makes a diamond with his hands, fingertips pressed together, and lets out a long exhale] Feel my embrace. Please. Know that I am here with you, and that solace is not a long ways off. All shall become dust in due time, but until then, at least we’re going to have each other. One will depart before the other, this is known, but I will always have the feeling of your fingers laced with mine as memento mori. [He drops the stance, shrugging and leans back in his chair] That one is just something I’ve been fooling around with for a little while. It’s still in the opening stages of writing.

Interviewer: That’s very different from what you performed before the soldiers of the Future Foundation.

Yanagi: Yeah, they needed something uplifting, so I gave them something uplifting. It’s a matter of knowing your audience. You wanted to see the art in motion, so I gave you something preliminary. They needed a pick-me-up, so I gave them that. It’s all about reading the crowd and performing accordingly.

Interviewer: I also understand that you were also a bit of a hassle after your performances for the Future Foundation.

Yanagi: Is that what they called me? A hassle? Fuck, they take themselves too goddamn seriously.

Interviewer: If your file is correct, you wanted to fight alongside the soldiers you just spoke to.

Yanagi: Ayup.

Interivewer: Why?

Yanagi: Stage poetry is not like a concert. You don’t go up there, do your thing, then walk off to only be seen by the VIPs with backstage passes. You go back into the audience, interact with them, and that makes you approachable and likeable.

Interviewer: So it’s a more social art form?

Yanagi: What was I supposed to do? Go back to my gilded cage and wait until I was supposed to sing again? No, I was fighting with them, and that was final.

Interviewer: So you were on the front lines? Did you ever have any formal training?

Yanagi: No formal training, but my dad taught me a thing or ten when I visited with him. We’d go out to a shooting range from time to time. I managed to score high marksman with a Colt 1911, and I sometimes did hand-to-hand combat drills with him. He wanted to make sure his kid could stick up for himself, you know?

Interviewer: Sounds like that came in handy.

Yanagi: More than once, I will admit.

Interviewer: So, what are you expecting to get out of your school life?

Yanagi: That’s an odd question. Are you looking for a particularly correct answer?

Interviewer: No, this interview is just a pretense. Something for the record.

Yanagi: I see… [He pauses, biting his lower lip out of nervous habit] Being a military brat didn’t give me much chance to make friends. I mean, all the friends I had in Japan treated me differently because I spoke English as well as I did Japanese, and I would disappear for months at a time. And all the friends I made in the States would move away or not stay in touch. Americans can be really fickle with their plans, you know.

Interviewer: So you want to make friends?

Yanagi: I’ve already proven myself in a trial by fire, both before and during the Tragedy. I just want something that will last, you know?

Interviewer: Hm…

Yanagi: [His expression is worried. He fears he’s done something wrong] Something up?

Interviewer: Just an unexpected response. You have so much confidence on the stage, yet you worry about saying something wrong and you haven’t really been able to maintain friendships because of the worlds you lived in. I just find it interesting.

Yanagi: Don’t get all head-shrinker on me, doc. You should know as well as I do that a lot of the time, we wear masks.

Interviewer: You’re not wrong. [Yanagi visibly cracks a smile] Welcome to Hope’s Peak.

**End Transcript**


	4. The Ultimate Physicist: Sueoka Hideo

**Bio**

ULTIMATE Physicist  
Name: Sueoka Hideo  
Age: 21  
Height: 5’3”  
Weight: 101 lbs  
Blood Type: O-  
Hair: Brown  
Eyes: Brown  
Likes: Privacy, calculus, the sound of a newton’s cradle  
Dislikes: Secrets of the universe remaining hidden, people bothering him

Before Tragedy: Sueoka Hideo always showed an aptitude for mathematics. By the age of thirteen, he had not only graduated Summa Cum Laude from the University of Tokyo with a Bachelor’s degree in physics, but had managed to fully pay for his tuition by solving two of the Millenium Prize Problems (“The Yang-Mills Existence and Mass Gap” and “The Navier-Stokes Existence and Smoothness Problem”), earning him the respect and envy of several prominent mathematicians in the scientific community. However, he did not devote this understanding of physics and the universe to the betterment of mankind… well, not quite. He only had a thirst for knowledge to grant him a greater understanding of the universe. As such, he began dabbling in physics at the astronomical and sub-atomic levels, working his way towards degrees in quantum physics and astrophysics shortly after his graduation.

During Tragedy: Hideo’s one saving grace during the tragedy was that he was a shut-in. While the rest of the world crumbled around him, he managed to keep himself locked in his room with (by the time he was recovered by the Future Foundation) a year’s supply of freeze-dried vegetables and cup noodles. During that time, he had not only managed to prove a half-dozen theories of the universe, but also write his own treatise on his findings. While not useful at the time, the Future Foundation gave him facilities and time to continue his work, knowing that it would be useful by the time the world was restored to order.

After Tragedy: Despite his new environment at Hope’s Peak, he maintains his hikikomori status, preferring to remain secluded in his room, only leaving to sneak into the cafeteria in the bare hours of the morning, snagging enough food to keep him sustained for the week before returning to his room. Those that catch glimpses of him see snarls of matted hair hanging in front of a sunken face, a wraithlike frame, and a sack of groceries that should be almost as heavy as he is. The only sounds he makes more often than not are the shuffling of his slippers as he moves along the hallway back to his dormitory room. The only one that has heard him speak in more than curt sentences has been Suzukaze Itsumi, and claims that his voice is hollow and raspy.  
Notable Features: He rarely bathes, instead choosing to focus on his research and postulates, causing him to emit a miasma of stench. His hair is thick, messy, and in desperate need of grooming. Without fail, people tend to see him in a pair of cargo shorts, thick-rimmed glasses, a white undershirt, and slippers.

_Interview 79.04 – Open_   
_Interviewer: Yamada Jiro, Psy.D_   
_Subject: Sueoka Hideo – “The Ultimate Physicist”_   
_Interview Date: May 9th, 8 AT (after tragedy)_

**Observation**

[The subject is a mousy looking man in a white t-shirt, cargo shorts, and sandals. All of these are stained in some way or another, and (based on the interviewer’s subtle reaction) the subject has not showered in some time. His hair is a shoulder-length matted mess of brown, and he has rings under his eyes that his coke-bottle glasses cannot hide.]

**Discussion**

Interviewer: Please state your name and age, for the record.

Hideo: Sueoka Hideo. 21.

Interviewer: Are you aware of why you were being scouted by Hope’s Peak Academy before the Tragedy?

Hideo: Mhm. [The subject looks incredibly uninterested, almost as if the interview is nothing more than an inconvenience for him]

Interviewer: I… see… So, just to confirm that our information is correct. Two-time solver of a Millenium Prize Problem –those would be“The Yang-Mills Existence and Mass Gap” and “The Navier-Stokes Existence and Smoothness Problem”- graduated summa cum laude from Tokyo University with a bachelor’s in physics, and you were working on a number of postulates in both astrophysics and quantum physics. All before the age of thirteen. Is this correct?

Hideo: Yup.

Interviewer: Now that we have that out of the way. Mind if I ask how you survived the Tragedy?

Hideo: I stayed inside.

Interviewer: You… stayed inside?

Hideo: Yup.

Interviewer: How long?

Hideo: Six months. Then had to leave to get food.

Interviewer: You had six months’ worth of food just sitting in your apartment?

Hideo: Yup.

Interviewer: How did it not go bad?

Hideo: Cup noodles. Freeze-dried veggies.

Interviewer: That… makes a lot of sense, actually. So during the tragedy, you managed to completely turn the entirety of Astrophysics on its head, either proving or disproving the majority of the theories that were floating around out there from renowned scientists like Dr. Hawking and Dr. deGrasse-Tyson. You also managed wrote an entire treatise on your findings, complete with the equations you used to get there. Do you have anything to say about that?

Hideo: No.

Interviewer: [visibly frustrated by all of these one-word answers] How did you manage to do that without access to any scientific equipment?

Hideo: Math doesn’t lie.

Interviewer: I beg your pardon?

Hideo: [yawns. Clearly he hasn’t had much sleep in who knows how long] Math doesn’t lie. If you know the math, you can solve anything.

Interviewer: But that doesn’t account for the experimentation aspect of it.

Hideo: Doesn’t have to.

Interviewer: Please explain?

Hideo: Chemistry is seventy percent math, thirty percent physics. Physics is one hundred percent math.

Interviewer: So what you’re saying is that, as long as you know the mathematics behind the situation, you are able to figure out pretty much anything?

Hideo: Yup.

Interviewer: I… see. Well, Hideo, welcome to Hope’s Peak.

Hideo: ‘Kay.

**End Interview**

_Interviewer’s note: Seriously?! SERIOUSLY? We really have to be scraping the bottom of the barrel if we’re genuinely accepting a kid like this to Hope’s Peak. He could just stay in his room and live off his cup noodles for the rest of his life, and we could reap the benefits from his work. There’s no need to send him to be the hope of the world if people that look at him can only see a “hikikomori”._


	5. The Ultimate Electrical Engineer: Takamori Akira

**Bio**

ULTIMATE Electrical Engineer  
Name: Takamori Akira  
Age: 23  
Height: 5’5”  
Weight: 129  
Blood Type: AB+  
Hair: Multicolored  
Eyes: Hazel  
Skin tone: Dark  
Likes: Shocking people with static electricity, the feeling one gets when they put their tongue across the contacts of a 9V battery, making circuits that seem to serve no functional purpose  
Dislikes: Letting out the magic smoke, people shocking her with static electricity

Before Tragedy: Akria’s father was an electrical engineer with Sony, always working on the hottest and newest game systems, and he often brought his work home with him. From a very young age, he let his daughter take a look at the defunct integrated circuits that he removed from the boards, putting them under a microscope and pointing out the various components and teaching her the basics of his business. She caught on much quicker than expected and soon began tinkering with the ICs in order to replace the miniature components. It wasn’t long until she was helping her father with his accomplishments just as much as he was making them. While Mr. Takamori wanted to introduce his daughter to his bosses, she was perfectly content with him taking the credit for her achievements in order to raise his pay. When she was barely in her teens, she approached Nintendo with a circuit diagram that allowed them to produce a much more efficient motion-sensor attachment for their Wii line, and seemingly sealed her future in the realm of production of high-tech gaming gear.

During Tragedy: Knowing that her skills in the hardware side of computer science could come in handy, the Future Foundation snapped her and her father right up, allowing them to continue their work for good rather than dying or falling to the side of Despair. The “Takamori Tag Team”, as their coworkers called them, managed to create more efficient radios that worked with a lesser number of antennas, build computers that could connect to the GPS satellites in order to give the FF’s strike forces an extra edge, and even create disruptor devices that could throw off the motion sensors of the Despair forces.

After Tragedy: At Hope’s Peak, Akira is a rather bubbly young lady, always running around in a pair of overalls and thick wool socks whenever she’s in the common areas of the building. When shoes are necessary, her sneakers are spattered with solder and flux, making her look the part even more than she already does. She likes to joke around with her classmates, building small items that distract or annoy them (though only momentarily), as well as shuffling along to build up a great deal of static electricity and shocking one of her friends without remorse.  
Notable Features: Akira has her hair done up in a number of thin braids, each of which seems to be a different color. Some are pitch-black while others are varying hues of a neon rainbow. She usually wears these bound up in a thick ponytail that sits on the crown of her head, causing a cascading waterfall of color to constantly play about her forehead.

_Interview 79.05 – Open_   
_Interviewer: Yamada Jiro, Psy.D_   
_Subject: Takamori Akira – “The Ultimate Electrical Engineer”_   
_Interview Date: May 10th, 8 AT (after tragedy)_

**Observation**

[The subject is female, with hair styled into dozens of braids. Each appears to be a different color, spanning a rainbow and then some. They are pulled back behind her head in a tight ponytail, and a pair of glasses sit on the bridge of her nose. She is wearing a pair of beat-up tennis shoes and a set of overalls. There is a noticeable bounce in her step as she walks into the room.]

**Discussion**

Interviewer: Please state your name and age for the record.

Akira: My name is Takamori Akira, and I’m twenty-three years old.

Interviewer: And you are aware of why you were being scouted by Hope’s Peak before the Tragedy?

Akira: [She sticks her tongue out in a playful manner] I think it’s safe to assume that it’s because I managed to revolutionize the way Nintendo produced gaming systems by the age of fourteen.

Interviewer: Correct. Could you actually tell us about that?

Akira: I’m not a genius or anything when it comes to EE theory. I just… I get circuits. One of my coworkers told me that watching me work on a circuit board must be like having seen Beethoven compose the Fifth.

Interviewer: So your coworkers thought it was like watching art in motion?

Akira: I suppose so, yeah.

Interviewer: Your father was the one that taught you the basics of Electrical Engineering, correct?

Akira: Yeah. But those of us in the field just call it EE for short.

Interviewer: And how did that influence your skills?

Akira: I don’t think I would be as good if it weren’t for him. It’s like building a house. You need strong groundwork, a solid foundation before you can start building all the really fancy stuff. He was the foundation. He gave me the basic theory and I could extrapolate from there.

Interviewer: So it’s safe to assume that you were particularly talented when it came to your mathematics courses?

Akira: [She lets out a bark of laughter, resting her hand on her forehead. Her face has changed a few shades darker red out of embarrassment] Oh hell no.

Interviewer: Could you please explain that?

Akira: It’s like… oh hell, how do I put this? It’s like the theory is stupid. I don’t get theory. I get seeing the numbers in front of me and figuring out the ratios myself. Dad taught me the basics of Ohm’s Law, and I was able to figure out how to calculate the resistance across Series and Parallel circuits based off that.

Interviewer: That’s impressive. But, even so, it’s just figuring out ratios, correct?

Akira: It’s easy with series resistors, yeah. You just add them together and treat them as one big resistor. But parallel is trickier. You have to see the inverse of the sum as being the sum of the inverse of each of the parts.

Interviewer: So you figured that out on your own?

Akira: Give me a breadboard, a multimeter, and enough time, and I can figure out a lot of things.

Interviewer: So what are some of the other things you worked on?

Akira: [She taps her finger on her chin for a moment, clearly pondering the notion] I never really got into the programming aspect of that. I like the smell of solder and flux, seeing the wisps of smoke and the sheen turning dull on a bead of melted metal as it hardens. I don’t think I could ever work in front of a computer, just punching in lines of code after lines of code.

Interviewer: That’s not what I asked.

Akira: Oh![she sits upright, excited all of a sudden] I managed to develop a method of linking capacitors so gamers could continue playing for almost 30 mins after their controller died out. That way, the controller could “die” halfway through a match of Splatoon or whatever, and the capacitor subset would serve as a backup battery until the match was over. This way, they don’t get completely screwed over by the battery dying. This way, match ends, you recharge/swap out the batteries, then you’re good to go.

Interviewer: That seems like it’s pretty common sense. How come nobody else thought of that before you?

Akira: For starters? More of them were focused on the product rather than the players. I mean, Nintendo was better about that than most, but even so. They’re a company, they gotta make a profit. You know?

Interviewer: I’m pretty sure I can understand that. Please, explain more about how this idea was deemed so revolutionary.

Akira: [she holds her hands up and starts illustrating with them, tracing lines in the air for the interviewer to follow along] Right so imagine that this is your circuit, yeah? You have your power source here, loads all over the place. But, what if you put a bunch of high-charge capacitors between the source and the first load? This way, you have a pre-charged source that can give power to the circuit even after the load dies out.

Interviewer: Then wouldn’t that mean the device stays on even after the power button is turned off?

Akira: Not unless you move the switch to between the last capacitor and the first load. That way, you can fully cut off power to the circuit without any wait.

Interviewer: Right… So what prompted this idea in the first place?

Akira: It was probably the fact that I was sick of my controller dying halfway through a game, just like all the other gamers that have had to deal with such a thing. When you’re in a really intense match, you don’t have time to think, let alone reach out and grab your power cable.

Interviewer: So it was based off practicality rather than profit?

Akira: Duh. I’m not some moneygrubbing corporate executive. I make products people can use. Not products that are intended to make money. Sometimes the two coincide.

Interviewer: So you are all about making items exclusively for the betterment of the rest of the world?

Akira: Well… not exclusively. I like making things for fun too. All work and no play makes Akira a dull girl, you know? [she gives a very childlike giggle at this notion]

Interviewer: [smiling despite himself] Well, Takamori Akira, I think you would be a perfect fit for Hope’s Peak. Welcome.

Akira: Really? Oh my god I’m so excited! I have to tell my dad! Thank you! [Without so much as saying goodbye, she stands up and runs out of the room, cheering, whooping and jumping in the air in excitement. The interviewer probably didn’t have the heart to tell her that she was accepted from the very start]

**End Interview**


	6. The Ultimate DJ: Kaga Oto

**Bio**

ULTIMATE DJ  
Name: Kaga Oto  
Age: 21  
Height: 5’7”  
Weight: 174 lbs  
Blood Type: O+  
Hair: It varies  
Eyes: Brown, but he wears colored contacts  
Likes: tfw the beat drops, altering the flow and style of a song to change the mood  
Dislikes: drugs at his concerts, country “music”

Before Tragedy: Kaga Oto seemed to be destined to make beats from the time he was a child, with his parents quickly finding that he preferred Daft Punk to Mozart while he was in the crib. As time went on, he quickly gained interest in other artists that were either up-and-coming or had burst onto the international stage such as Klaypex, Nero, and Flux Pavilion. People knew that he had made the big time when he served as an opening act for the Glitch Mob’s world tour, and just as many people were coming to see him perform as they were the headliner. By the time he became a teenager, he’d produced three studio albums that utilized not only his own considerable skills, but also samples from the films of Akira Kurosawa and Quentin Tarantino. 

During Tragedy: While the Ultimate Despairs Ibuki Mioda and Hiyoko Saionji were doing world tours trying to turn more and more people to the side of Despair, Kaga Oto was determined to work against them, even entering into a makeshift Battle of the Bands against the former Ultimate Musician herself. By the end, people called it a draw, and the Future Foundation marks it as one of the turning points of the war against despair.

After Tragedy: Kaga Oto is very introverted, preferring to keep to his room and work on his mixes instead of socializing with his classmates. However, whenever he leaves his room, he is quiet among his fellow Ultimates, choosing to focus entirely on the conversation at hand. However, if Garrett Holstein is among the conversation partners, he will inevitably make some form of snarky remark about the American, causing his fellow to react rather adversely. When Holstein gets incredibly frustrated, Kaga Oto quietly begins recording the outbursts, planning to use them in his mixes.  
Notable Features: Aside from his choice of jacket (which has speakers built into the collar), his hair that seems to change color on a bordering daily basis, and his collection of colored prescription contacts, he makes multiple references to internet jokes that are (by this point) incredibly outdated.

 

_Interview 79.06 – Open_   
_Interviewer: Yamada Jiro, Psy.D_   
_Subject: Kaga Oto – “The Ultimate DJ”_   
_Interview Date: May 12th, 8 AT (after tragedy)_

**Observation**

[The subject is male, indiscernible figure on account of the large jacket he wears. It’s black, zipped up despite the impending summer, and it seems to have a number of pieces of sound equipment sewn into it. These items include speakers on the high collar that covers his mouth, what appears to be a microphone barely hidden by his left sleeve, two more speakers on each of his sides, and fiber optics running along the seams of his jacket, shifting through cycles of light in time with the music coming out of the speakers. The song playing for this particular meeting is a remix of “Around the World” by Daft Punk, presumably modified by Oto himself. The hair color of the week is neon violet.]

**Discussion**

Interviewer: Please state your name and age for the record.

Oto: [He pauses the music, but when he speaks, the speakers on his collar pulse, altering his voice as if it’s through a vocorder] Kaga Oto, age 21.

Interviewer: And you are aware of why you were being scouted for Hope’s Peak before the Tragedy, correct?

Oto: [instead of a response, he taps on the left side of his ribcage in a certain rhythm, prompting sounds to come out of the speakers in time to his taps, though there have to have been some pre-recorded lines in there. It appears that, in addition to his other equipment, he has a Launchpad in his jacket as well.] Something like that?

Interviewer: I believe that is an accurate assessment, yes. So, do you have any other gadgets hiding in that outfit of yours?

Oto: Yes.

Interviewer: Care to demonstrate?

Oto: Not quite. An artist must keep some secrets.

Interviewer: I understand. What can you tell us about your work during the Tragedy.

Oto: I made music, people listened, and were inspired. I have to say that you folks at the Future Foundation were really clever, focusing on both classical and new age with your music selection… what was her name…? [he snaps his fingers, trying to remember, the fiber optics on his body lighting up red with each snap] Marié. Kaneshiro Marié. Very talented. I want to use her voice at some point.

Interviewer: The Future Foundation would appreciate the compliment, I’m sure, as would Ms. Kaneshiro. But I’d rather focus on you right now. 

Oto: Understood.

Interviewer: Many people believe that one of the turning points of the War on Despair was your “Battle of the Bands” with Ibuki Mioda. People that heard it still talk about it to this day. “The Former Ultimate Musician vs. The Future Ultimate DJ.” How did you feel about that incident?

Oto: It was something I wasn’t used to. I’d been in DJ battles in the past, but against Ibuki… it was something else. I knew the whole battle would be life-or-death, but she actually made me afraid.

Interviewer: So you were afraid for your life in that duel?

Oto: Who wouldn’t be? She had more experience than I at the time, and our gifts were the same. I had to use some really dirty tricks in order to make sure that she didn’t get ahead with the crowd.

Interviewer: Would you care to explain some of them?

Oto: A lot of the music that she did was inspired by Grunge-Era American Rock, with some influences from the Pop-Punk era. So different from the music that we have in Japan simply by definition. I had to tempo down her music in order to force her into different styles, such as blues or Jazz, which are naturally heartwarming simply based off the sound. It was a gradual process, but I had to take it one step at a time, and even go so far as to use her own lyrics as drops during my dubstep pieces before I switched into the realm of trance in order to calm the crowd.

Interviewer: I’m going to be completely honest with you, a lot of that went over my head.

Oto: She was playing fast. I made her slow down. The crowd calmed down as a result.

Interviewer: I see. That makes sense. So when you’re not going toe-to-toe with world-ending individuals, what kind of style do you do?

Oto: I do a combination of house and dubstep, with a little bit of trance for the more calm atmospheres. A lot of my samples are taken from either movies by Quentin Tarantino or Kurosawa Akira, or anime done by Studio Madhouse.

Interviewer: Do you appreciate the works of Tarantino and Kurosawa, or do they just have a good source for samples.

Oto: A bit of both, actually. The scene at The House of Blue Leaves from Kill Bill where The Bride goes up against the Crazy 88 is one of my favorite scenes in cinema. The choreography and music selection is amazing, and it’s honestly kind of inspiring.

Interviewer: What about the choices of anime?

Oto: Madhouse definitely goes over the top when it comes to their animation choices. One Punch Man and Hellsing Ultimate are by far and away some of their paragons, but the catchphrases of some of their characters are just so worthy of music that I can write entire concept albums about the individuals themselves, using their lines as centerpoints.

Interviewers: Do you have anything of the sort in the works right now?

Oto: You’ll have to see.

Interviewer: I can’t help but notice that you’re awfully cagey when it comes to secrets of your trade. Is there a reason why?

Oto: I’m a magician.

Interviewer: I thought you were a DJ.

Oto: Very funny. But a magician doesn’t reveal the secrets of their tricks. Why should I reveal the secrets of my trade?

Interviewer: That makes sense. Still. You have more than proven yourself in the War on Despair, and you’ve earned a bit of time to focus on your art more than anything else. Welcome to Hope’s Peak.

Oto: Thank you. I doubt I’ll disappoint.

**End Interview**


	7. The Ultimate Marine Biologist: Hiromi Chie

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alright this isn't a summary, but it's an honest story. My best friend has been part of this series from day one. I told her about this character by saying "HEY DO YOU WANT TO SEE A LESBIAN PIRATE"
> 
> Her response: "excuse me there's a WHAT"
> 
> And that's how I found out my bestie has a thing for pirates.

**Bio**

ULTIMATE Marine Biologist  
Name: Hiromi Chie  
Age: 22  
Height: 5’4”  
Weight: 122  
Blood Type: B-  
Hair: Black  
Eye: Blue  
Likes: scuba diving, takoyaki, sushi, the thrill of going under in a bathysphere  
Dislikes: flying, cryptobiology, deadlines  


Before Tragedy: Hiromi Chie was a gift to the scientific community from the very start. Gaining an understanding of the various layers and realms of understanding in the area referred to “the Twilight Zone” by the time she was twelve, and discovering a new species of fish in the South China Sea by the time she was thirteen, several groups of biologists wanted her skills for a number of expeditions, constructions of lures to entice the creatures of the deep, and theories about new groups of fauna that would exist closer to the seafloor. During Chie’s second expedition, she deployed an experimental cephalopod lure that managed to entice out an adult specimen of Architeuthis japonica, and observe not only its feeding habits, but catch it on video so the whole world could see it in action.  


During Tragedy: There wasn’t really room for marine biology during the tragedy. What there was call for, however, was experienced pilots. Chie was not only a brilliant biologist, but a natural helmsman. Her experience on the seas around Japan allowed her to know all of the currents and winds by heart, allowing her to move people, supplies, anything that the Future Foundation needed. She liked to joke around about being a pirate on the high seas, until a wayward shot during a ship battle caught her across the left eye. She barely survived, and the eye would never work again, but that did nothing to curb her enthusiasm about her “piracy”.  


After Tragedy: Chie is a boisterous, jovial individual, choosing to be a little closer to her female classmates than the men. She claims that she already spent plenty of time among boys when she was the captain of her ship. The one boy that she feels close to, however, is Ryo, whose love for the wildlife of the sea almost manages to match her own.  


Notable Features: During the Tragedy, she really let the whole “pirate” thing go to her head, prompting her to wear vests, long-sleeved shirts, boots, and even an eyepatch once she lost her eye, forgoing the traditional fake eye that so many people were offered.

_Interview 79.07 – Open_  
_Interviewer: Yamada Jiro, Psy.D_  
_Subject: Hiromi Chie – “The Ultimate Marine Biologist”_  
_Interview Date: May 13th, 8 AT (after tragedy)_

**Observation**

[The subject is female, with the most noticeable feature about her being that she has an eyepatch covering her left eye, decorated with a Jolly Roger. Her black hair is tied back in a tight bun, presumably to keep it out of the way, and she wears a combination of vest, linen shirt (apparently straight out of a ren faire), and trousers tucked into calf-high boots. Her shoes thump against the floor as she walks, announcing her presence even before she arrives. She flops in the seat and lays across it with her legs propped up on one arm, her upper body leaning against the other.]

**Discussion**

Interviewer: Please state your name and age for the record.

Chie: Hiromi Chie, and I just turned 22 in April.

Interviewer: Happy Belated Birthday.

Chie: Thank you!

Interviewer: Are you aware of why you were being scouted by Hope’s Peak before the Tragedy?

Chie: You mean aside from being the first person to lure out a specimen of Architeuthis japonica, capture it on film, observe its feeding habits, AND discover the species Platybelone mori?

Interviewer: You already appear to be aware of your own accomplishments. Now, are you also aware that your “Ultimate” title is pending, despite them?

Chie: [she sits up and proceeds to sit in the chair normally] You’re doing what now.

Interviewer: Due to your work during the Tragedy, most of which had nothing to do with Marine Biology, Hope’s Peak is planning on changing your title from “The Ultimate Marine Biologist” to “The Ultimate Pirate” on account of all of the goods and people you managed to smuggle during the Tragedy, as well as your understanding of ships and waterways.

Chie: I mean… I like the sound of that, but anyone with half a brain could have figured out what I did.

Interviewer: Half a brain and fifty years, maybe. But you managed to figure it out in a third of the time, less even. You’ve already been accepted to Hope’s Peak on account of your skills in either field, but we want to hear your reasoning why we should or should not change your title.

Chie: [she folds her hands, wringing them slightly before rubbing her palms together slowly] My work is with the sea. That much is for certain.

Interviewer: We never denied that.

Chie: But all of the work that I did beforehand, scientific discovery and what not? That became moot when the world was ending. People had to take precedence over the wonders of the deep, because they were tangible. I knew how to help them, how to bring them out and get them to safety. I’m not Aquaman for crying out loud! I can’t talk to fish! I just… get them.

Interviewer: So you’re advocating a change to “The Ultimate Pirate”.

Chie: NO! I mean… no. I don’t want to be known because of things I did during the war. I want to go back to science. I want to see the depths of the ocean, find more species that nobody has ever seen before. I’m 90% sure that there are massive species of fish at the bottom of the Mariana Trench that we haven’t seen because we simply haven’t made enough expeditions down there! I want to reach the bottom of the Challenger Deep in a bathysphere before I ever have to move goods of any kind.

Interviewer: So you’d rather continue discovering than be a transporter?

Chie: Absolutely.

Interviewer: Excellent. Then we’ll maintain your title of “Ultimate Marine Biologist.” Can you tell us more about these hypotheses regarding the Challenger Deep?

Chie: [her face lights up and she leans forward in her chair, hands making diagrams] The Mariana Trench is the deepest part of the world’s oceans, right? The Challenger Deep is the deepest part of the deepest part. It’s almost seven miles below sea level at its deepest point, and it is oddly temperate despite being so far from sunlight.

Interviewer: Why is that?

Chie: Thermal vents. Cracks in the Earth’s crust allow heat to seep out, creating an incredibly warm climate despite the distance from any source of solar light. This allows an entirely new ecosystem to form in a place where so few things should be able to live in the first place.

Interviewer: I see. And what is it that you hope to find down there?

Chie: Are you familiar with the coelacanth?

Interviewer: If memory serves, they’re fish that were supposed to be extinct over 60 million years ago, but were rediscovered in the early 20th century.

Chie: I’m thinking that there are similar finds in the Challenger Deep.

Interviewer: Prehistoric fish?

Chie: Absolutely! Imagine how much we could learn about the world and evolution of life in the ocean if we had more examples of fish from millions of years ago to go by. 

Interviewer: Do you think that there are any other species that you could find down there that may be drastically different from any other part of the world?

Chie: I mean… yeah. Of course. Probably. But I just want to get down there for myself and see what I can find, you know? Whether it’s in a submersible or a bathysphere, I want to see the sand at the bottom of the bottom of the ocean for myself, and what creatures live in there.

Interviewer: So you truly are an adventurous spirit. Do you think your missing eye will be a hindrance at all?

Chie: Probably. But I’d like to see them try to stop me.

Interviewer: Your determination is admirable. I’ll inform your teacher that you’ll be attending classes in August.

Chie: Thankye, matey.

Interviewer: What was that?

Chie: [feigning innocence] Nothing.

**End Interview**


	8. The Ultimate Ornithologist: Hayabusa Eien

**Bio**

ULTIMATE Ornithologist (and Ultimate Bird)  
Name: Hayabusa Eien (and Alex 2.0)  
Age: 22  
Height: 5’4”  
Weight: 115 lbs  
Blood Type: B-  
Hair: Brown with a red streak through it  
Eyes: Brown  
Likes: Drawing really impressive specimens, referring to them as “birbs”  
Dislikes: That one song by the Trashmen, fighting robot anime

Before Tragedy: While she was being scouted for Hope’s Peak, and even before then, Eien was one of the foremost authorities in the world on multiple species of bird that she had studied, and even a few more that she had discovered in less-traveled areas of Japan. Her favorite subject, however, is her African Grey Parrot, named “Alex” after the subject of Dr. Irene Pepperberg’s Avian Learning Experiment. It’s estimated that, due to Eien’s natural connection with the bird and replication of Dr. Pepperberg’s methods, Alex 2.0 already had the intelligence of an average three-year-old human by the time the tragedy hit. Furthermore, by the time of the tragedy, Eien had already published three treatises on various bird species that existed in different regions of Japan, all of which contained intensely detailed and beautiful diagrams.

During Tragedy: After seeking out the Future Foundation on her own, she and Alex served as scouts against the Despairs, using not only Alex’s capabilities, but those of other birds in the area to determine movements and activities. Another strategy that Eien was fond of was using flocks of sparrows, doves, or crows to block off the path of a group of enemies, effectively boxing them in so the Future Foundation could finish the job.

After Tragedy: After being re-accepted into Hope’s Peak, Eien continues her studies with Alex. By this point, the bird has reached the intelligence of an average five-year-old, and learns more with each passing day. Happy to be in a relatively normal life once again, Eien has dedicated a notebook to studying her classmates rather than birds, following the same style of the treatises she had already published. 

Notable Features: Eien has an inexplicable red streak through her hair, and she constantly denies that she dyes it. Furthermore, even if her head is covered, look or listen for the parrot not too far away from her. 

_Interview 79.08 – Open_   
_Interviewer: Yamada Jiro, Psy.D_   
_Subject: Hayabusa Eien and Alex 2.0 – “The Ultimate Ornithologist” and “The Ultimate Bird” respectively_   
_Interview Date: May 14th, 8 AT (after tragedy)_

**Observation**

[The individual in question is a very slender woman with brown hair that has an inexplicable red streak through it. The hair hangs loose, and a grey parrot sits on her left shoulder. The bird cocks its head and quickly takes in its environment, while the woman, wearing a black T-shirt with a grey symbol for the Astrological Cancer, takes a seat.]

**Discussion**

Interviewer: Please state your name and age for the record.

Eien: I am Hayabusa Eien, age 23.

Alex: I am Alex. [whistles]

Eien: He’s going to be turning 10 this year.

Interviewer: Impressive. How long does his species usually live for?

Eien: Alex is an African Grey Parrot, and they can live for up to fifty years.

Alex: I am Alex.

Interviewer: Why the name “Alex”?

Eien: He’s named after another African Grey that was studied by Dr. Irene Pepperburg, named because he was an “Avian Learning Experiment”.

Interviewer: And your Alex is capable of learning? Like beyond training a dog?

Eien: Of course. Let me show you. [she lets Alex perch on her finger before she sets him on the table, taking a handful of pistachios from the bowl and setting six of them on the table] Alex, how many are there?

Alex: [cocks his head, then looks back to Eien] Six.

Eien: And if I take away three, how many will there be?

Alex: Three.

Eien: If I add four, how many will there be?

Alex: Seven.

Eien: Excellent. [she puts the rest of the pistachios back in the bowl, and nudges the ones she put on the table over to Alex. Alex starts cracking the nuts open and eating the insides.]

Interviewer: So he is capable of doing basic math?

Eien: Only addition and subtraction, so far, but I’m trying to find a way to visualize multiplication and division in a way that he can understand.

Interviewer: So you can’t teach him in the same way you would teach a child?

Eien: Not quite. He understands some abstracts, such as color. He knows what color he is.

Alex: I am Grey.

Eien: And he can read some, but for the most part, parrots don’t understand abstracts in the same way that we do. I figure that, given ten more years, I could circumvent that.

Interviewer: That’s really impressive. So it’s possible that parrots are smarter than some children and they just don’t realize it?

Eien: I’d go so far as to say that Alex is smarter than most children.

Alex: [recognizes the compliment and lets out a pleased whistle. Eien starts stroking the feathers on the back of his neck with her index finger]

Interviewer: That’s astounding. But while Alex has been your main subject, what are some of the other birds you’ve worked with?

Eien: I’m especially fond of Corvids. Ravens, crows, et cetera. They’re incredibly intelligent and even have an idea of play. Furthermore, there have been crows that can use water displacement to retrieve food, indicating that they have at least a rudimentary understanding of volume. 

Interviewer: I actually have a copy of one of your treatises here. [he reaches into his bag and removes a book. A glimpse at the spine reads “On the Subject of Avian Intelligence – Hayabusa Eien”]

Eien: I’m surprised there were any copies of that left. There were a lot of books burned during the Tragedy.

Interviewer: I would like to say that your illustrations in here are very impressive. Particularly the ones of sparrows. They seem almost lifelike, even though they’re only done in pencil. How come you never pursued art as a career option?

Eien: I like animals better. Especially birds.

Alex: Mommy likes me best.

Interviewer: He calls you mommy?

Eien: It’s something he picked up from when I took him to a day-care a long time ago. His memory is really astounding. 

Interviewer: I’d say. How long did it take you to draw these? [he holds up the book, showing a page detailing feeding habits of sparrows]

Alex: That’s a beautiful baby bird.

Eien: It took me about an hour for each of those pictures. I had to scrap a few of the original drawings.

Interviewer: Really? Huh. They seem like they would have taken a lot longer.

Eien: They should have, but they didn’t. Alex, no more. [Alex has finished the pistachios set out for him and moved over to the bowl to retrieve additional nuts]

Alex: [jumps off the table and settles on Eien’s shoulder again. Even an amateur could see that he’s a little disappointed.]

Interviewer: One more question before we go. People that saw you working during the tragedy claimed that you could talk to the birds. Is that true?

Eien: Anyone can talk to them.

Interviewer: That’s not what I mean.

Eien: No, really. Anyone can talk to the birds. It’s just a matter of knowing HOW to talk to them, and knowing how they could respond.

Interviewer: Are you saying that they have a language?

Eien: Every species has a language. Some even have several. It’s just a matter of knowing which method to use to speak to them.

Interviewer: That was… exceedingly cryptic.

Eien: It’s the best answer I can give.

Interviewer: Nevertheless, welcome to Hope’s Peak. We’ll see you in classes in August.

Alex: Thank you!

**End Interview**


	9. The Ultimate Fisherman: Shinkai Ryo

**Bio**

ULTIMATE Fisherman  
Name: Shinkai Ryo  
Age: 23  
Height: 6’6”  
Weight: 263  
Blood Type: A-  
Hair: White  
Eyes: Blue  
Likes: Tuna, Salmon, Marlin, Sturgeon, Eel, Trout, Clams, Squid, Mussels, Oysters… oh, you get the point.  
Dislikes: pre-made fishing lures, kosher salt

Before Tragedy: A man living with his family in the Wakasa Province, Shinkai Ryo learned the art of fishing at a very young age, just as all members of his family previous. However, his teacher (and father) noticed that he had a link with the sea. Almost being able to feel the fish moving in the water underneath him, Ryo was able to cast his lures, nets, and harpoons perfectly in order to bring in massive hauls back to shore. Naturally, his skill in his chosen trade managed to catch the attention of Hope’s Peak Academy’s scouts. Were this intentional, it would be a case of them taking the bait. Hook, line, and sinker.

During Tragedy: Ryo lost his father to the Despairs when they took to the sea, shredding Old Man Shinkai’s boat to driftwood with the machine guns of a Japanese Destroyer. However, the Shinkai family was not the only one that lost a fishing boat that day. Several other fishermans’ boats suffered the same fate. As one of the few fishermen that stayed ashore that day (not quite. Ryo took a small rowboat out diving for oysters), it was up to Ryo and the few other fishermen to provide for their entire town on the coast. He took them back to the feudal days of fishing, netting flounder and other flatfish that many of the commercial fishermen had forgotten about because they did not sell well in the rest of Japan. This was no longer fishing for money. It was about survival, and Shinkai Ryo was determined to make sure the people in his town survived.

After Tragedy: Once the Future Foundation made their way to Ryo’s town, they found that, despite the state of the rest of the world, it was pretty much unscathed and practically thriving compared to so many other places along the coast. Seeing one of their previous prospects doing so well, they extended him the invitation to join Hope’s Peak once it opened up again. He gladly accepted, knowing that his town would be safe and stable in his absence. Among his classmates, he stands as a gentle giant. Polite and kind, yet intense once he has a fishing rod in his hand. Almost every morning, he goes down to the river with a rod, reel, and lures of his own making, and casts out. Invariably, he brings back a plentiful catch; enough to feed his entire class when they wake up for breakfast. Even so, some of the students choose to eat more traditional breakfast foods instead of the bounty of the river.

Notable Features: Due to constantly being out in the sun and spray, Ryo’s hair has turned as white as his skin is dark. He generally wears a tank top that shows off his broad shoulders and powerful physique. He is not the ripped kind of muscular of a bodybuilder, nor the toned form of a fighter, but a thick, solid wall of muscle built up over years of hard labor.

_Interview 79.09 – Open_  
_Interviewer: Yamada Jiro, Psy.D_  
_Subject: Shinkai Ryo – “The Ultimate Fisherman”_  
_Interview Date: May 14th, 8 AT (after tragedy)_

**Observation**

[The subject is massive, the crown of his head almost brushing the doorframe as he steps through, with white hair pulled back behind his head and skin tanned from days spent out in the sun. His eyes are the blue of a stormy sea, and his body is a thick slab of muscle barely constrained by the black tank-top and board shorts he wears. He sits down in the chair, and it creaks slightly under his weight, causing him to wince.]

**Discussion**

Ryo: Mornin’.

Interviewer: Please state your name and age for the record.

Ryo: So formal? I thought this was going to be a little more relaxed.

Interviewer: The rest of the interview will be. We just need to get some of the proceedings out of the way.

Ryo: I understand. My name is Shinkai Ryo, out of Wakasa, and I’m 23 years old.

Interviewer: And you are aware of why you were being scouted by Hope’s Peak before the tragedy?

Ryo: Aside from my profession?

Interviewer: Once again, for the record, could you please say what your profession is?

Ryo: I’m a fisherman, just like my father, and his father before him, all the way back to the early days of the shogunate.

Interviewer: There. Now we’ve gotten the formalities out of the way. So you’re a lot more relaxed than most of the people in your class that I’ve spoken to thus far. Is there a reason for that?

Ryo: My father taught me that unless you have rod and reel in hand, net in the water, or boat on a wave, you should not take life as seriously. Fish is serious business, life is not.

Interviewer: I take it that you learned most of what you know from your father.

Ryo: Oh yes. My family wasn’t as well off as some of the other fishing families, so we needed all hands out at sea, and that meant I couldn’t get a good schooling.

Interviewer: That’s a bit of a shame. Do you feel that your father’s teaching served you better?

Ryo: Tell me, when am I ever going to use algebra on the sea? Do you think that a storm cares about my ability to find for “X”? No, I like to think that what my father taught me is practical, and practical is what we needed in the family business.

Interviewer: You admire him a great deal.

Ryo: That didn’t sound much like a question.

Interviewer: It wasn’t.

Ryo: [Laughs] Oh, you city types are always wound so tight. I like you, despite that. But yes, I admire him. He… he was a good man. He lives on in me, and in my family, and in the sea.

Interviewer: Your father died in the Tragedy?

Ryo: [His once-smiling face turns somber very quickly] Yes… I suppose that is what most people call it. In my town, we just called it “Assholes doing asshole shit”. Though, “The Tragedy” rolls off the tongue better.

Interviewer: What happened to him?

Ryo: Battleships. Maybe American, maybe Japanese. I don’t care. They lit up the ships out at sea like so many fireworks. You could tell when a family patriarch died, probably the sons too, by seeing the fireballs as the shells hit the gas tank.

Interviewer: Why weren’t you out there?

Ryo: I wasn’t feeling well that day. Admittedly, I wanted to use it as an excuse to go diving for oysters. I managed to find a pearl that day, but… I suppose pearls are worthless when you can’t come home to all of your family.

Interviewer: I’m sorry to hear that.

Ryo: Did you send the battleships to blow up our fishing boats? No? Then you have no reason to apologize. What is done is done. Apologies will not bring my father, or all those other fathers back, but action will at least honor their memory.

Interviewer: Did you get your conviction from him as well?

Ryo: No, actually. That was my mother. She put all of the children of our village in line with the efficiency of a drill sergeant, and she only needed to tap a wooden spoon on the desk to do it. 

Interviewer: [barely holding back laughter] You definitely have a good way of describing things. How did you get to be so good with language if you didn’t have any formal schooling?

Ryo: [waggling a finger at the interviewer] Now, that’s where you make yet another mistake. You city folk think that people that don’t go to school like y’all did are dumb. We’re just smart in other ways. I’m pretty sure that you and five of your friends together couldn’t cook, swim, clean, dive, fish, or make your own alcohol half as well as I could. It’s about practicality. That’s what matters in the world after your “Tragedy”.

Interviewer: You can make moonshine?

Ryo: We had to have some ways to pass the time without your internet or TV shows, hm? [He grins wickedly] My father grew sugar cane in the backyard just for the purpose of making alcohol. He made distilling look like an art form. I actually have a bit on me, if you’d care to taste some of our handiwork. [he reaches into the pocket of his board shorts and produces a wooden flask, fire-hardened and blocked with a cork stopper. He offers it to the interviewer]

Interviewer: You do realize you’re being recorded, correct?

Ryo: WE are being recorded. Besides, this is a more laid-back interview, yeah? [he unstoppers the flask then takes a belt of its contents before passing it over to the interviewer]

Interviewer: [He reluctantly reaches out and takes the flask, taking a bold swig of whatever was inside. He immediately coughs afterwards and hands the flask back, much to Ryo’s amusement] Wow. Strong stuff.

Ryo: It’s an art, city boy. And my father was Da Vinci.

Interviewer: Then what does that make you?

Ryo: Some other artist. No idea. Point is: We village folk aren’t all dumb. We just seem that way because we are smart in other areas.

Interviewer: I… will definitely take that to heart. Thank you. You’re definitely wise beyond your years.

Ryo: Goodness me. A city boy compliment. [his voice is laden with sarcasm] I’ll treasure it for years to come. [he bursts out into laughter and takes a pair of glasses from a nearby desk, pouring half of the flask’s contents into each. He slides one across to the interviewer] Here. Take this. My gift to you, given with my father’s blessing.

Interviewer: Ah… [he stares at the glasses, then at Ryo before shrugging and closing up his notebook] Fuck it. It’s a casual interview anyway. Cheers.

**End Interview**


	10. The Ultimate Soccer Star: Chigusa Fumiko

**Bio**

ULTIMATE Soccer Star  
Name: Chigusa Fumiko  
Age: 23  
Height: 6’0”  
Weight: 156  
Blood Type: A-  
Hair: Green  
Eyes: Green  
Likes: The smell of fresh-cut grass, travelling, burritos  
Dislikes: clowns, mascots, zombie apocalypse stories

Before Tragedy: Chigusa Fumiko was not just a good soccer player. She was a great soccer player. Elected team captain of her team four years running, she was not only an effective leader, but also a brilliant player, scoring at least forty percent of her team’s goals and actively participating in another thirty. The heart of the team from age ten onward, she was slated to be a staple of Japan’s Olympics once she turned sixteen. Despair found her when she was playing a tournament with other junior soccer teams all around the world. In a match against Brazil, hundreds of fans pulled on monokuma masks and started to use whatever was close to them to kill the other spectators, a few of them even jumping down onto the field and accosting the players and referees. Fumiko had no choice but to run.

During Tragedy: If there’s one thing that Soccer is good for, in terms of practicality, it’s endurance running. Fumiko managed to keep running for about six hours with several of the other players on that field, even finding a few survivors along the way and continuing their sprint towards the mountains. From there, they all managed to set up shelter and live off the fat of the land for a little while, with Fumiko and some others occasionally making supply runs down into the city. Six months after the Future Foundation began to fight back, Fumiko ran into some of their soldiers on a supply run, and quickly joined her group up with them. Just as her team, the fifty-odd people living in the mountains trusted her absolutely, and were finally able to return to civilization (sort of) because of her leadership.

After Tragedy: The first thing that Fumiko did once she got into Hope’s Peak was to take off her shoes and run on the grass of the soccer field. Her classmates watched on in bemusement as she cheered and whooped, even taking a few diving rolls, happy to have her home away from home again. When interacting with her classmates, however, she has a sense of presence that makes you want to listen to her and follow her direction. Whether she realizes she has this power or not, she does not use it often.

Notable Features: Her hair and eyes are the green of the soccer pitch she plays on, and she can usually be found wearing her standard soccer gear. Even when out of her cleats and shinguards, she wears her jogging shorts and t-shirt almost daily, to the point where her classmates think she has multiples of the outfit. Her legs are long and well-toned, and her body is honed like the edge of a knife to be sharp, precise, and able to make quick turns on a dime if need be.

_Interview 79.10 – Open_   
_Interviewer: Yamada Jiro, Psy.D_   
_Subject: Chigusa Fumiko – “The Ultimate Soccer Star”_   
_Interview Date: May 15th, 8 AT (after tragedy)_

**Observation**

[The subject is a very tall young lady with long legs. These are hard not to notice due to the fact that she is wearing running shorts. From the waist up, she wears a normal t-shirt, but her eyes and hair are both the same color of green as the grass of a soccer pitch. She takes her seat and crosses one leg over the other in a dignified manner, leaning back in the chair in a way that makes her look almost like a mobster kingpin.]

**Discussion**

Interviewer: Please state your name and age for the record.

Fumiko: My name is Chigusa Fumiko, and I’ll be turning 23 in late July.

Interviewer: And are you aware of why Hope’s Peak was scouting you before the Tragedy?

Fumiko: I had been captain of a soccer team since I was 10 years old, and I managed to lead my team to claim the Junior World Championship two years in a row.

Interviewer: That would certainly help. [he noticeably is wearing sunglasses and rubs his forehead with a groan]

Fumiko: Are you alright? You seem a little… well, hungover.

Interviewer: I’m fine. The interview from yesterday was a little… intense. It left me with a rather large headache.

Fumiko: Right. So you’re here to pick my brain, right? Pick away.

Interviewer: If our records are correct, your story about your escape from the start of the Tragedy was quite something.

Fumiko: Your records are correct.

Interviewer: If you would be kind enough, I’d like to hear your side of the story.

Fumiko: Only if you tell me the true story about what happened yesterday.

Interviewer: I’m afraid that we can’t play by those rules today.

Fumiko: Then you’re not getting my story. Interview over. [she stands up and starts to walk off]

Interviewer: Wait… Wait. I’ll tell you.

Fumiko: [She sits back down, taking almost the exact same pose as before] Then I’ll tell you my side.

Interviewer: Go on.

Fumiko: It was during a match. It was a pretty big one: The up and coming Japanese team vs. the favorites of the tourney, Brazil. All the people that cared about such an event were watching with interest, trying to see how the matches would play out. At halftime, a couple hundred people put on those stupid bear masks and began to attack the other people in the stands. A couple of people even jumped out of the stand and onto the pitch in order to attack the players and referees.

Interviewer: So what did you do?

Fumiko: What I was good at. I ran.

Interviewer: You just left everyone behind?

Fumiko: Those that couldn’t keep up. I wasn’t going to stay back and die to make sure people were safe.

Interviewer: Not even your own team?

Fumiko: [her gaze is cast down, crestfallen, saddened with the memory] I… I was scared. We were all scared. I saw people getting killed by other people in these bear masks, and you expect me to stand and fight? I was fifteen for christ’s sake! You people at Hope’s Peak think of us as “Ultimates”, but we’re all just kids. I was scared, so I ran.

Interviewer: I’m sorry. I was just curious about how you viewed your role as team leader in that point.

Fumiko: It didn’t exist. We were all either killers or victims, running for our lives.

Interviewer: Where did you run?

Fumiko: We were lucky. There were mountains and forests not too far from the city, so I ran there.

Interviewer: You ran all the way out of the city and into the mountains?

Fumiko: Soccer is all about endurance. Add that to the adrenaline, and I could have run to China, water be damned.

Interviewer: And what about the people at the stadium?

Fumiko: Dead, probably. I mean, Ai and Yuki managed to make it as far as I did.

Interviewer: Members of your team?

Fumiko: Yeah. Ai was our goalie, and Yuki was a defender. We managed to gather up a bunch of people as we left the city, and that was what we started with.

Interviewer: How many of you were there in all?

Fumiko: Fifteen to start. Couple of old folks, one or two children. Most of us were pretty able-bodied, so we looked after everyone else. I would lead runs down into town to see what kind of materials we could get. We lost a few people to the Despairs on those runs, but it was mostly successful. We actually managed to get a small colony set up in the mountains, until, on one run, we saw a bunch of people fighting off the Despairs.

Interviewer: The Future Foundation.

Fumiko: I’d never heard the name before, so how was I to know? All I knew was that the enemy of my enemy was my friend.

Interviewer: So you approached them?

Fumiko: No, actually. Ai did. She didn’t feel fear the same way a lot of us did.

Interviewer: What happened after Ai made contact?

Fumiko: They asked her questions, who she was, what she was doing. We managed to snag a couple of rifles from a busted-up police station, so we had them trained on the Future Foundation soldiers just in case they tried anything funny.

Interviewer: You were willing to shoot Future Foundation people?

Fumiko: We didn’t know they were Future Foundation. How were we to know that they wouldn’t hurt us?

Interviewer: So what made you trust them?

Fumiko: Ai came back alive.

Interviewer: That’s a pretty low standard to keep.

Fumiko: The Despairs were more likely to shoot first and ask questions later. Even their own people, sometimes. It didn’t seem likely that they would go out of their way to have a bunch of people show self-restraint when they could induce more despair by ensuring the scouting party never came back.

Interviewer: Fair point. So you took them back to your camp?

Fumiko: We did. They took care of us and got us off the mountainside. Elderly and children first, then the parents. Ai, Yuki, and I were the last to leave.

Interviewer: So were you a leader of these people at all during this time?

Fumiko: No. I just did what I could to help out, even if that meant that I would have to stay behind and look after people.

Interviewer: But you led the supply runs down into town.

Fumiko: What of it?

Interviewer: You put your life on the line to ensure that your people had enough supplies to last through the Tragedy.

Fumiko: That doesn’t mean that I’m a leader. It just means I was willing to look out for people.

Interviewer: You were a team captain for such a long time. None of that leadership came out when you were on the mountain?

Fumiko: No. Leading a team is different than leading a village.

Interviewer: I’m taking it that you are not too fond of the idea of taking a leadership role again.

Fumiko: If I have a leadership role again before I die, it will be too soon.

Interviewer: That’s a shame. Nevertheless, welcome to Hope’s Peak.

Fumiko: Now for your side of the story.

Interviewer: Excuse me?

Fumiko: You were supposed to tell me about why your interview from yesterday left you with a headache.

Interviewer: He… [the interviewer removes his sunglasses] He brought moonshine to the interview yesterday, and he shared.

Fumiko: Oh my god, you are hungover.

Interviewer: Not from that, though.

Fumiko: What.

Interviewer: We wound up going out for drinks afterwards. I think it’s safe to say that he has the liver of a demon.

Fumiko: What the hell is this guy? The Ultimate Alcoholic?

Interviewer: I think we misnamed him.

Fumiko: Clearly. Now that my curiosity is sated, I’m going to leave. When do classes start?

Interviewer: August.

Fumiko: Thank you.

**End Interview**


	11. The Ultimate Horror Author: Tatsuda Yorokobi

**Bio**

ULTIMATE Horror Author  
Name: Tatsuda Yorokobi  
Age: 23  
Height: 5’6”  
Weight: 161 lbs  
Blood Type: B+  
Hair: Black  
Eyes: Red  
Likes: Scary Movies, Jazz, Junji Ito  
Dislikes: unnecessary sex scenes in movies that aren’t immediately followed by murder, the harpsichord, those people that paint themselves to look like statues

Before Tragedy: Tatsuda Yorokobi published her very first work at the age of eleven, a novel detailing a man’s slippage into insanity after his wife left him, and the incredibly unsettling reveal of how he buried his own wife beneath the floorboards of his house after she made the announcement. Rather than send her to a psychiatrist (like many people claimed was appropriate), her parents instead encouraged her to continue her writing career, seeing that her daughter had true talent. She published her first novel at the age of thirteen, then two more in the same year, all following the similar styles of psychological surreal horror that her first story did. Throughout her publishing career, she was praised for her depictions of her characters’ descent into madness, as well as the calculated, clinical, and accurately detailed descriptions of murders and crime scenes. These can be attributed to her dabbling in forensics and her intimate understanding of the human body from her research.

During Tragedy: Her writing experience did not come in much handy during the Tragedy, but her skill in forensics did. When notable individuals were murdered most foully, and the individual in question was not readily apparent, Yorokobi was able to examine the crime scene and determine cause of death and positioning of individuals involved in the crime. Her skill as a coroner and detective simply based off her writing and research into writing allowed her to become much more effective than the Despairs thought she would be.

After Tragedy: Despite her skill in writing horrifyingly insane stories, Yorokobi is bordering on bubbly in attitude, always willing and able to greet people with a smile and a spring in her step. Furthermore, she is more passionate about her writing than anything else. People that meet her enthusiasm with equal passion are in for one hell of a conversation, while those that are not able to keep up with her mania are likely to disinterest her and cause her to think that she’s saying something wrong.

Notable Features: Yorokobi’s hair is a big poof of black that seems to be barely restrained by a single hair clip and a few bobby pins, and her eyes switch from being subtle and serene to being bordering on manic whenever she talks about her work. Unless she absolutely HAS to go outside the school grounds, she will likely wear jogging shorts and a tank top the entire day, even greeting her fellow classmates in an outfit that some might consider immodest.

_Interview 79.11 – Open_  
_Interviewer: Yamada Jiro, Psy.D_  
_Subject: Tatsuda Yorokobi – “The Ultimate Horror Author”_  
_Interview Date: May 17th, 8 AT (after tragedy)_

**Observation**

[The subject is a young lady in a pair of bell-bottom blue jeans and a white t-shirt. The t-shirt almost seems a size too small, hugging tightly to her frame and accentuating a rather ample bust, but the subject does not appear uncomfortable. She flops down across the arms of the chair, her legs dangling over one arm while her upper body hangs off the other. She sits up and flips her massive mane of black hair over the arm and settling down anew before she turns her gaze onto the interviewer. Her eyes are cherry red, and the sinister look about her simply based on appearance does not match the cheery smile she gives him.

**Discussion**

Yorokobi: Good morning!

Interviewer: Please state your name and age for the record.

Yorokobi: Wow. Right down to business, aren’t we? Well, my name is Tatsuda Yorokobi, but my friends call me Yoro. I am twenty-three years old and I like long walks on the beach, murders, and human anatomy.

Interviewer: That was more information than necessary. I’d like to inform you that this is a bit more of a relaxed interview, and not nearly as formal as you were expecting.

Yorokobi: Then call me Yoro and we’ll be even.

Interviewer: I thought that only your friends called you Yoro?

Yorokobi: Well, if this is a casual interview, you can call me Yoro for the time being as well. [she turns her head and winks at the interviewer, causing him to start a little]

Interviewer: Well… Yoro. Your disposition is much more cheerful than I expected?

Yorokobi (referred to as Yoro from this point onward): What were you expecting? Some kind of overly dramatic girl that can’t take her mind off tragedies and murder? Someone more likely to spew out a line such as “Oh, woe is me!” than anything else?

Interviewer: If I’m going to be honest, I was expecting someone really morbid.

Yoro: [she gives the interviewer a smile that seems more hungry than anything else] And who’s to say that I’m not?

Interviewer: Could you expand on that?

Yoro: I went out of my way to learn about the various functions of the human body before I started writing seriously. I even went so far as to learn a little bit about fluids and pressure-based physics before I wrote some scenes. It’s nice to know how to write murder scenes accurately, you know. It makes the audience that much more squeamish.

Interviewer: I won’t deny that. So you’re a fan of classic slasher horror? Friday the 13th, maybe even Halloween?

Yoro: I’m… on the fence about those. While I do like the gore aspect, I’m less interested in them on account of their lack of real horror aside from jumpscares.

Interviewer: That actually partially answers my next question.

Yoro: [she cocks her head to the side, so her right ear is almost parallel to the floor] And what is that?

Interviewer: I was about to ask about why you prefer writing psychological and suspense-based horror more than anything else.

Yoro: You’re ignoring the massive amount of “unsettling violence” that I put into my work.

Interviewer: What do you mean? Personally speaking, I thought the violence was well-done.

Yoro: Yeah, but you’re not one of those ridiculously right-wing people that demands that I stick to horror fitting conservative values… so they don’t want me to write at all.

Interviewer: Clever, but I’m asking why people consider the violence unsettling.

Yoro: While most of it was done out of point of view, there is still the discovery of the murder scene, which is usually messy as hell.

Interviewer: You put a great deal of detail into those scenes.

Yoro: Of course! It’s the only time I get to cut loose in that kind of story. Writing horror is different from writing any other kind of fiction, because you have to plan everything out beforehand. You can’t just write on a whim.

Interviewer: Please expand on that.

Yoro: Take _The Wasp King's Gift_ , my first novel. If you don’t want to appear like that one Hollywood Hack… damn, what was his name again… Anyway, this guy always throws in a twist ending at the conclusion of each of his stories. A couple of times, it was really well done. But, most of the time, it just came across as stupid and cheesy. I had to make a point to avoid that, and I had to do it through really subtle hints. Kind of like how that one guy in Fight Club keeps on seeing Tyler Durden before he even meets Tyler Durden.

Interviewer: So there’s a lot of planning involved.

Yoro: You bet! But it’s kind of difficult to plan for something like that without making it obvious. Like I said: Subtle hints.

Interviewer: So when you write the actual murder scenes, you see it as a way of being able to have fun in your own story?

Yoro: Yup! It’s a lot of fun writing out line after line of nasty, gory detail and know that it’s just going to make people sick. I have a couple of tricks that I use to help on that front.

Interviewer: What are some of those?

Yoro: Oh, now now, a lady mustn’t give away all her secrets! [she acts very coy for a moment before letting out a laugh]

Interviewer: I’d like to remind you that this interview is just for the trustees. It will not be released to the public. And… [he leans in close, speaking so quiet that the audio can barely hear him] between the two of us, the trustees are about as creative as a cardboard box.

Yoro: [immediately begins howling with laughter, kicking her legs in excitement. It’s a minute before she’s able to calm down]

Interviewer: So will you share with me some of your secrets?

Yoro: After making me laugh like that? Why not? [she starts counting off on her fingers] The thing about dead bodies is that the movies and books often gloss over a lot of the stuff that really happens when a body dies. For starters, dead bodies STINK. Like, not just the smell of death that you associate with nursing homes, but there’s a lot of… really delightful aromas that come out of a body.

Interviewer: Such as?

Yoro: Something that a lot of people tend to gloss over is that, when a body ceases to function, the body evacuates its bowels.

Interviewer: I… see. And you make a point to include that in your writing?

Yoro: Sight and sound are the two senses paid attention to the most in writing. People don’t pay as much mind to smell, even though it could be just as powerful. If you’re talking about mother’s cooking or the smell of rotting meat, they both conjure a very distinct image that means people will have an emotional connection with.

Interviewer: So using smell is one of your dirty little tricks?

Yoro: For writing, yes.

Interviewer: … Right. So what is another trademark of your work that sets you above and beyond in the horror department?

Yoro: I like writing sanity slippage for any one of my characters. It’s really interesting to see how much a person will miss when they’re losing their mind bit by bit?

Interviewer: And that works for you?

Yoro: You do NOT want to see my browser history.

Interviewer: Are you usually this open about sex, or are you trying to throw me off?

Yoro: Is it working?

Interviewer: No.

Yoro: Awww… well, it’s just a little bit of a sad thing for me. I always did like reading books that were essentially porn on paper, but those Harlequin Romances have a shelf life of maybe three days. And they’re just so… bad.

Interviewer: So you want to expand your horizons outside of horror and into erotica?

Yoro: More or less. I mean, I already pay attention to a lot of emotional and sensory information, anyway. It should just be a little bit of a shift in the style for me.

Interviewer: Well, here’s to hoping that the wife doesn’t go too crazy over your work.

Yoro: You’re married?

Interviewer: [holds up his left hand to show a wedding band]

Yoro: Oh, shucks. That’s a little upsetting.

Interviewer: Welcome to Hope’s Peak.

**End Interview**


	12. The Ultimate Thief: Akibara Nezumi

**Bio**

ULTIMATE Thief  
Name: Akibara Nezumi  
Age: 22  
Height: 5’2”  
Weight: 107 lbs  
Blood Type: A-  
Hair: Red  
Eyes: Black  
Likes: The sound of a bustling city, people that keep things in their back pocket, Rolexes  
Dislikes: Absolute silence, people that keep things in their front pocket, her drill breaking

Before Tragedy: There’s very little in this world that Akibara Nezumi liked better than a good theft. Using her punk-rock style and a sly smile, she managed to master the art of the con and pickpocket. Using light fingers and even the cheapest set of picks, she managed to become more than a standard street grifter and ascend into the realm of true thiefdom. While people tried to purchase her services for burglarly or a shill job from time to time, she preferred to steal what she liked from who she liked paying off only herself, resulting in a bit of anger directed her way from the Kuzuryu clan. Though, despite the Kuzuryu clan’s vast resources, Nezumi was able to evade capture because the only thing that was better than her thieving abilities was her seemingly unnatural ability to detect a setup. 

During Tragedy: Despite her lone wolf attitude, when the world was turning to shit all around her she didn’t think of it as an opportunity to increase her personal wealth. Instead, she managed to use her skills to track and break into the Future Foundation headquarters in Tokyo, and leave a letter on Chairman Tengan’s desk while he was out, informing him that she would work coinciding with the Foundation’s interests, but that she would not work for them. As such, she spent a lot of time misdirecting shipments of food for the Despairs to the public or to the Future Foundation, as well as stealing valuable documents or items and redistributing them to the appropriate benevolent parties. Throughout the tragedy, there are probably eight or nine confirmed sightings of Nezumi by both the Despairs and the Future Foundation combined.

After Tragedy: The Future Foundation had to go a really roundabout route to get Nezumi her acceptance letter, relying on an armed guard, an armored car, and a really high-tech safe in order to conceal the letter and entice her into breaking in. After, she reluctantly showed up, and immediately prompted an increase in the security of Hope’s Peak, particularly regarding her classmates’ rooms. Eventually, it was rendered futile, and Nezumi only ever showed an interest in stealing from Hayabusa Eien, on account of Alex 2.0 serving as a really intelligent guard dog.

Notable Features: Nezumi prefers to work in a pair of jeans, a tank top, and her trademark leather duster, filled to the brim with sets of picks and even a drill for safes. Furthermore, she has piercings all over her face, including four in each ear, three in the left eyebrow, and one in her septum.

_Interview 79.12 – Open_   
_Interviewer: Yamada Jiro, Psy.D_   
_Subject: Akibara Nezumi – “The Ultimate Thief”_   
_Interview Date: May 17th, 8 AT (after tragedy)_

**Observation**

[The subject is bordering on tiny, befitting her name, and has a mop of unnaturally red hair on her head, some of it hanging in front of her eyes. It’s also worth noting that she wears a massive overcoat over her normal clothes, and that it appears to be weighted down by many things in its various pockets. She takes care with the coat when she sits down, implying that there may be something fragile inside it.]

**Discussion**

Interviewer: Please state your name and age for the record.

Nezumi: Akibara Nezumi, twenty-two.

Interviewer: And you are aware of why you were being scouted by Hope’s Peak Academy before the Tragedy.

Nezumi: I’m really good at stealing shit.

Interviewer: While that may be true, do you know the real reason why Hope’s Peak scouted you?

Nezumi: Seeing as that was the only thing I was good at beforehand, no.

Interviewer: Hm. The thing is: Hope’s Peak doesn’t scout individuals that engage in criminal activities unless they have the potential for greatness.

Nezumi: You want to explain that to me, or should I let my imagination run wild and think that I can be pretty pretty princess of ImaginationLand?

Interviewer: There’s no need for sarcasm.

Nezumi: Oh, there’s plenty of need for sarcasm. You motherfuckers [she gestures at the camera] have been watching me for as long as I’ve been stealing shit –don’t think I didn’t notice- and now, after a veritable shitstorm has wafted across the entire earth, you want me to join your precious little school? Fucking. Precious. Don’t you businessman types usually go for schoolgirls, though? Why bother with a delinquent like me.

Interviewer: I see. You are attempting to state an opinion about the school by emasculating me and stating that I prefer women not of legal age.

Nezum: Look at the big brain on this asshole! Yes, I intend to make you look the moron by pointing out the obvious.

Interviewer: Moving on from your perception of my sexual preferences, would you care to explain a bit of your craft to me?

Nezumi: Which bit?

Interviewer: You have broken into multiple places, snuck past security cameras, avoided armed guards, and managed to do this all before the tender age of fourteen. I would like to know what you do that is different from all the common footpads and cutpurses on the streets.

Nezumi: Shake my hand.

Interviewer: Excuse me?

Nezumi: Shake. My. Hand.

Interviewer: Ah… alright?

[He extends his hand, and Nezumi takes it in a firm handshake, even leaning across the short table to rest her hand on his shoulder with a smile. After she pulls away, she holds up a watch between her index and middle fingers.]

Interviewer: [checks his wrist] You… how?

Nezumi: Contact is a bad thing for a lot of people. But here in Tokyo, where folks are packed in like sardines on the best of days, it’s wonderful. I can bump into someone and steal their wallet, shake hands and take a watch, fall into someone’s arms and snag their cell phone.

Interviewer: Alright… what about this is so different from all the other talented pickpockets?

Nezumi: Pickpockets are good at one thing. I’m able to jimmy open even the finest lock with the shittiest set of picks. I can shadow a guard without a sound, make him think he’s hearing things when he looks over his shoulder. I can see the slightest differences in the depressions on electronic locks and figure out combinations. It’s not just dexterity for me. It’s wit, intuition, skill.

Interviewer: So you’re saying that your intelligence makes you a better thief.

Nezumi: Absolutely.

Interviewer: How did your intelligence serve you when you were fighting against Despair?

Nezumi: You see a lot of trucks. Some of the trucks are set a little lower, weighed down. Those ones are carrying the important shit. You can’t stack people five high.

Interviewer: You made a point to not rescue people?

Nezumi: They weren’t of value to the people I was already looking after.

Interviewer: That seems a bit heartless.

Nezumi: All’s fair in war.

Interviewer: You seem to have intentionally excluded the word “Love” from that statement.

Nezumi: “Love is a fickle mistress”. I can quote the poets too. Don’t try to twist proverbs on me. I told you that I’m smart, and I don’t just mean street smart.

Interviewer: [holds his hands up in surrender] Fair enough. Why did you choose to help people instead of making something for yourself?

Nezumi: Can we do a different question?

Interviewer: No.

Nezumi: Please?

Interviewer: I appreciate the attempt at politeness, but no.

Nezumi: Fuck you.

Interviewer: That language is not necessary. Just please, answer the question?

Nezumi: [she pauses, visibly curling in on herself, eyes darting to check the nearest exits in case she has to bolt] Picking bodies was ugly.

Interviewer: You stole from the dead?

Nezumi: In the first days, yeah. There would be a fight in the streets, and I would take valuables from corpses left in the aftermath. It didn’t take long for me to realize that canned goods were more important than Rolexes in those times.

Interviewer: Did you feel any remorse before then?

Nezumi: A little. Like, it was too easy? Does that make sense? Corpses can’t tell when you’re slipping fingers into their pocket, or when you take a watch without them noticing. [She dangles the watch between her fingers again] But it’s like doing a magic show for a dead audience. There’s no joy in it?

Interviewer: So you compare your theft to prestidigitation?

Nezumi: Assuming that’s a fancy-ass word for “stage magic”, then yes. It’s all about playing on people’s expectations and sleight of hand.

Interviewer: So why did you start caring about people?

Nezumi: They saw me eating like royalty and wanted in.

Interviewer: That seems strange for a thief that was only in it for herself. 

Nezumi: Strange, but not impossible.

Interviewer: How did you manage to redistribute the goods in such a way?

Nezumi: Strangely? I had help.

Interviewer: Explain?

Nezumi: It was kind of classic, to be honest. We’d have someone wearing a Despair mask, sometimes a uniform, stop the truck when we knew it would be between checkpoints, and have our guy chat up the driver while me and maybe two other people broke into the back and snagged the supplies.

Interviewer: Clever.

Nezumi: I know.

Interviewer: Did it ever go sour? Like did the driver ever notice?

Nezumi: No. We made sure to use someone particularly attractive for the job. Tits distract everyone, male or female, no matter the orientation.

Interviewer: So you’re more of a heister than a thief?

Nezumi: No. I still prefer to work alone.

Interviewer: Do you at least think you could get along with others for a year or so?

Nezumi: I did it for seven years up until now.

Interviewer: Good. Then welcome to Hope’s Peak. [He stares down at his wrist briefly] Ah… can I have my watch back?

Nezumi: No. I earned this shit.

**End Interview**


	13. The Ultimate Tennis Star: Suzukaze Itsumi

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Once again, not a summary, but a bit of a disclaimer. I wrote out this interview (to say nothing about when I came up with the character) in October of 2016. Spike Chunsoft started releasing information about Danganronpa V3 in November of that same year, which makes me INCREDIBLY furious about the existence of Hoshi Ryoma as a character.
> 
> Playing Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony earlier today (9/26) and learning about how he has used his talent in the past has only amplified this frustration.

**Bio**

ULTIMATE Tennis Star  
Name: Suzukaze Itsumi  
Age: 23  
Height: 6’2”  
Weight: 172  
Blood Type: O+  
Hair: Blonde  
Eyes: Green  
Likes: The smell of a newly-opened can of tennis balls, freshly cut grass, bacon, beer  
Dislikes: people watching tennis just to stare at her ass, asparagus, clay courts

Before Tragedy: Suzukaze Itsumi was born to a salaryman and a stay-at-home mom, growing up as a normal girl would in Japan. That was, until she saw an American broadcast of a tennis match between Serena and Venus Williams. Seeing two women, twins, paragons of their sport, going toe to toe without mercy, each giving it their all, sparked something in Itsumi. It wasn’t long afterwards that she started taking tennis lessons. By the time she was eleven, she was consistently beating her teacher, and there were already murmurs of her going to the Olympics. Her serve was considered by far one of the deadliest in Japan, with her being able to hit the corners of the court with ease.

During Tragedy: Kyoto was hit hard by the tragedy, and Itsumi had to step up in a big way in order to keep her family safe. Since she had already gotten her acceptance letter to Hope’s Peak in the mail, she was one of the top targets of the Despairs. It was when she used her tennis racket to send a lobbed grenade back to sender (with deadly results), that she knew she would be able to convert her skills on the court into something tangible for the war. In numerous conflicts, she was able to use her serves to send grenades into areas that would have otherwise been inaccessible to soldiers, and clear out rooms that could have potentially been death traps seconds before Future Foundation soldiers set foot inside.

After Tragedy: Itsumi isn’t the kind to take shit from anyone, with a passionate attitude and an imposing figure. She has been willing to resort to violence on more than one occasion, usually resulting in her victory, and especially doesn’t like bullies, no matter the kind. One odd thing that she is known for, however, is that sometimes classmates that are wandering the halls late at night will see her walking around completely bare from the waist up and wearing a pair of cookie-print PJs from the waist down. So stunned are they by her openness with her body that they dismiss it as an illusion, unwilling to talk to other people about it on account of the fearsome subject of their conversation.

Notable Features: Tennis being one of the physically most grueling sports (after soccer), Itsumi has very well developed arms, legs, and core. She usually wears her hair tied up in a tight ponytail, and tends to wear glasses when she’s not on the court (on the court she wears contacts). 

_Interview 79.13 – Open_   
_Interviewer: Yamada Jiro, Psy.D_   
_Subject: Suzukaze Itsumi – “The Ultimate Tennis Star”_   
_Interview Date: May 18th, 8 AT (after Tragedy)_

 

**Observation**

[The subject is a statuesque female, with a powerful form built up over years of practice on the tennis court. She has her thick blonde hair tied up in a bun, and a pair of spectacles sitting on the bridge of her nose, and is wearing a pair of cargo shorts and a t-shirt that reads “Serving up Pain” in block print superimposed on a tennis racquet. She takes her seat in the chair and folds one leg over the other while she keeps her hands folded in front of her.]

**Interview**

Interviewer: Please state your name and age for the record.

Itsumi: Suzukaze Itsumi, age twenty two. I’ll be turning twenty three on the fourteenth of June.

Interviewer: Are you aware of why Hope’s Peak contacted you both before and after the tragedy?

Itsumi: Before, I knew it was because of my tennis skills. After, I’m not sure whether it’s for the same reason, or more as a formality for fighting in the war on despair with the skill that I did.

Interviewer: Yes, let’s actually talk about that second part. The files on you say that you were basically living artillery. Do you agree with these claims?

Itsumi: [Lets out a raucous laugh]Oh my goodness, is that what they call me now?

Interviewer: That was just the moniker that caught my eye. There are multiple more in here. “The Iron Racquet”, “The Bunker Buster”, “Death from Above”. One of your former COs even referred to you as “The Ex-Wife”, citing the sheer amount of destruction you caused.

Itsumi: And yet, “Living Artillery” was the one that caught your eye? The others seemed so much more interesting.

Interviewer: When it comes to things like this, I like to get to the point. What in particular did you do that allowed you to be so effective on the battlefield and earn you all of these titles?

Itsumi: I used my Talent. [She shrugs nonchalantly and leans back in her chair as if that is going to be all that she has to say]

Interviewer: That can’t be all.

Itsumi: No. That’s literally it.

Interviewer: Your talent is tennis, correct?

Itsumi: Correct.

Interviewer: So you played tennis with your opponents?

Itsumi: More “at” them than “with” them, but yes.

Interviewer: You mean to tell me that you won all of those battles with tennis balls.

Itsumi: Tennis balls that exploded.

Interviewer: So you modified your tennis skills for combat.

Itsumi: It was still tennis. I just needed a reinforced racquet and different balls that I knew wouldn’t be coming back.

Interviewer: While we’re on that subject, could you please tell us about your tennis skills being incorporated into battle. What did you have to change about your skill and what did you have to keep the same?

Itsumi: The serve was the core of it. You’re not going to have some idiot with a tennis racquet on the other end trying to serve it back to me. The trick was increasing the speed of my serves.

Interviewer: Due to the nature of what you were serving?

Itsumi: Yeah. [she demonstrates the action with her left hand –presumably her serving hand] I had to pull the pin out and pop the lever off in order to prime it as I was tossing it in the air. That would start the countdown and if I messed up the serve, then it would get messy really fast.

Interviewer: So how long did it take you to perfect that modified serve?

Itsumi: [counting on her fingers] Three days? I think?

Interviewer: Impressive.

Itsumi: Not really. I was using dummy grenades most of the time, so it was safe, but the handlers were still concerned about my actions and the potential reactions.

Interviewer: “Most of the time”. You mean to tell me that you were using live grenades at some point?

Itsumi: In a controlled environment, yeah. I managed to get the serve right on the second day, so I wanted to practice my accuracy with the new technique on the third day. Grenades are heavier than tennis balls, and even the dummy grenades are a little lighter than the real ones. Plus the real ones go boom while the others don’t. So there’s that.

Interviewer: Why would you have to actually blow things up in order to consider yourself effective?

Itsumi: I’m not a soldier. I was never involved in demolitions. Grenades were the first experience I had with high explosives. I mean, yeah, I set off a few firecrackers on new years’ with friends and family at one point, but one of those didn’t have the potential to kill a half dozen people… unless you got really creative. [she shrugs and starts pondering, presumably how she would kill six people with a single firecracker]

Interviewer: So you needed to see how the explosions worked in real time. How they were going to be able to interact with the environment to ensure your effictiveness.

Itsumi: I mean… yeah? I just wanted to figure out how big the explosion was so I could clear a room better. But what you said makes sense too.

Interviewer: Let’s focus on the actual battles for a moment. All of your commanding officers cite that you were an exceptional soldier, and that your skill with grenades on the battlefield allowed you to make urban engagements a breeze.

Itsumi: [chuckling] I get the feeling that they would have had a lot more things than that to say about me.

Interviewer: They also say that you were… a little worrisome on the battlefield. Not because of your efficiency, but because of your attitude.

Itsumi: They called me crazy, didn’t they? [She says this nonchalantly, as if she’s been told this a hundred times before, and didn’t care any of those times either]

Interviewer: There were a few of your commanding officers and non-commissioned officers, as well as enlisted individuals that served with you, that thought that your behavior on the battlefield was almost –and I’m using a direct quote from a second lieutenant that served with you here– lustful. In fact, many of the people that observed you said that you seemed to enjoy combat in a way that would earn you a medical discharge in the past.

Itsumi: [the more the interviewer speaks, the wider and more devilish the smile on her face gets] They’re right.

Interviewer: Come again?

Itsumi: Have you ever felt an explosion rumble through your body? The way it ripples across the air and makes every cell of your form quiver. [her face is turning red with blush, and she almost seems to be salivating] It truly is orgasmic. I was not turned on by the acts of what I was doing. The fact that I was ending lives on the battlefield made me scared, and ashamed of myself. But feeling those explosions go off… Oh god… [she brings her fingers up to her lips and starts licking them slightly, completely forgetting that she’s in an interview, so lost is she in her own fantasy. She starts rubbing her legs together, a soft moan escaping her lip. The interviewer is clearly very uncomfortable with this]

Interviewer: Ms. Suzukaze. Please focus. 

Itsumi: [not responding to the interviewer] I cannot tell you how many times I came on the battlefield. One time I collapsed because it was so intense… one of the soldiers thought I had been hit. I just told him I had been knocked down. I didn’t want him to know.

Interviewer: MISS SUZUKAZE!

Itsumi: [snapping out of her erotic reverie] Huh? What?

Interviewer: We need to continue with the interview. Moving on from that previous topic, unsettling as it was. Do you think that your history on the battlefield would get in the way of you spending time with people that are just as skilled as you, albeit in different fields?

Itsumi: I don’t believe so. Why do you ask?

Interviewer: Because if it becomes a problem, I am afraid that you will be expelled from Hope’s Peak.

Itsumi: I assume that this means that I’m accepted to the school?

Interviewer: Don’t make the board regret this decision.

**End Interview**


	14. The Ultimate Barber: Yagami Genjiro

**Bio**

ULTIMATE Barber  
Name: Yagami Genjiro  
Age: 22  
Height: 5’8”  
Weight: 114 lbs  
Blood Type: B-  
Hair: Blonde  
Eyes: Grey  
Likes: Tragedy (like in plays), Opera, the sounds of shears cutting through hair  
Dislikes: Comedies, people being intentionally over-dramatic (the irony is delicious)

Before Tragedy: Raised on European opera and the sound of scissors, Yagami Genjiro quickly found his love for both. His father ran a rather successful barber shop in the center of Tokyo, and taught his son how to run the family business early on. Following a classic model, Yagami Goro focused on the intimacy of a haircut, rather than speed and efficiency. Genjiro took his father’s style and added in the missing elements by the age of thirteen, humming bars from The Barber of Seville as he did so. By the time he was accepted to Hope’s Peak Academy, he had already gathered a rather impressive clientele of not only the usual businessmen, but also Diet members, athletes, and even a few film stars.

During Tragedy: The intimacy of a shave and a haircut grants the barber the opportunity to discuss things such as politics, sports, and machinations of world-ending organizations. Once the world went to shit, Yagami and Son received a new group of clients: The Despairs. While attending to the trims and whiskers of the various members of the organization, Genjiro and his father managed to collect secrets. Secrets that they passed on to the Future Foundation. However, while Genjiro was out getting groceries, the Despairs came to exact vengeance on their barbers, realizing that the two of them had been collecting secrets during those moments where their looks were being tended to. Genjiro escaped, but Goro was not as fortunate. Taken in by the Future Foundation, Genjiro continued to bring his admirable services to the higher echelons of the Future Foundation, who knew that he would never betray their secrets.

After Tragedy: Genjiro accepted his father’s death a long time ago, but still claims to use it as an excuse for his over-dramatic demeanor. He uses his scissors and razor as props in what appears to be his own personal Greek Tragedy, even going so far as to use archaic language in his speeches. This irritates most of his classmates, yet none of them can deny his skill, nor his ability to form poetic sentences at the drop of a hat.

Notable Features: Genjiro keeps his own hair cut short, so it does not interfere with his work, and is usually seen wearing a vest, long-sleeved shirt, and half-moon glasses. Nine times out of ten, he will be wearing what is basically a barber’s utility belt, complete with everything he needs (save a chair) to give someone a trim or an absolute hair overhaul at the drop of a hat.

_Interview 79.14 – Open_   
_Interviewer: Yamada Jiro, Psy.D_   
_Subject: Yagami Genjiro – “The Ultimate Barber”_   
_Interview Date: May 19th, 8 AT (after Tragedy)_

**Observation**

[The subject is male, with blonde hair and a pair of half-moon glasses that sit halfway down the bridge of his nose, allowing him to glance over them at a moment’s whim for a different look at the work he’s doing. He wears a black satin waistcoat over a white shirt and black pants, with his sleeves rolled up to his elbows, and wears what appears to be a utility belt around his waist. The belt has a multitude of pouches and slots for various items. Easily visible are three pairs of scissors (all different sizes), a straight razor and strop, a set of clippers and its various attachments, a small dispenser (presumably for shaving foam), and a towel. Upon entering the room, the subject takes one of the smaller, more normal chairs, maneuvers it to a place with a great deal of empty space, and gestures for the interviewer to take a seat.]

**Interview**

Genjiro: Please, sir. Take a seat.

Interviewer: Please state your name and age for the record.

Genjiro: Sir, take your seat, and we can begin properly. [He does not move, only standing there like a stern father looking at a disappointing child.]

Interviewer: Very well. [He stands up and moves to the chair, taking a seat. The barber takes out a vinyl cape from one of the pouches on his belt and drapes it over the interviewer, clasping it behind the back of his neck.]

Genjiro: Now then. A little off the top? Something different? Something to impress the wife, perhaps?

Interviewer: How did you know I was married? I’m not wearing my ring. [At this point, Genjiro begins feeling the interviewer’s hair, massaging the scalp a bit as he tries to get a feel for the canvas he’s working with. The majority of the barbering noises will be omitted from this transcript for clarity’s sake.]

Genjiro: The absence of your ring is noticeable. Most men that wear their rings on a regular basis have a tan line, much like you do. I’d estimate… five years?

Interviewer: Four, actually. I’m guessing that this is part of your package of talents?

Genjiro: I wouldn’t deny such a thing. Let’s go with something to impress her. I guarantee that she’ll be commenting on how much more handsome you look after we’re done.

Interviewer: I think that a guarantee like that is bound to carry, considering why we’re here.

Genjiro: [He offers a sly smile before he continues with his work] And why are we here, doctor?

Interviewer: [pauses, blinks a couple of times, then shakes his head and leans forward for his notepad and pen] Could you please state your name and age for the record?

Genjiro: That’s more like it. My name is Yagami Genjiro, age twenty-two.

Interviewer: And you are aware of the reason why you were being scouted by Hope’s Peak before the tragedy?

Genjiro: Do not call it that. [He says this flatly, and he tenses up visibly at the mention of a “tragedy”]

Interviewer: Is there any particular reason why?

Genjiro: There is a reason, an impetus behind a tragedy. There are lessons and morals to be learned as the dust settles and the blood dries. Junko Enoshima’s attacks on the world had absolutely no reason or rhyme aside from causing despair, and there was no clear-cut lesson to learn at the end of it all.

Interviewer: I see… do you want us to call it something else, then?

Genjiro: Please.

Interviewer: Very well. Do you know why you were being scouted before the war?

Genjiro: Much better. Thank you. And I believe I was being scouted for the very same reason that I have you in this chair, I assume.

Interviewer: You’re not wrong.

Genjiro: Interesting turn of phrase. [He begins trimming down the shaggier parts of the interviewer’s hair with a small pair of scissors, using a comb to help with the measurements] Would you mind if I ask where you picked it up?

Interviewer: One of your classmates, actually. He seems to use a number of phrases that incorporate double-negatives in order to yield a positive. They were catchy, and I found myself using them as well.

Genjiro: Interesting. Are there any more of my classmates that have rubbed off on you in such a way?

Interviewer: No, not really. Then again, none of them work with words the way he did. Wait. I shouldn’t be telling you this.

Genjiro: Ah, but you are. And that is yet another part of my talent.

Interviewer: Could you expand on that?

Genjiro: Turning the tables now that you are aware that I listen carefully, hm? I don’t mind. This is, after all, your interview of me. There is a sense of trust between someone and their barber. The person receiving the haircut is vulnerable, and they trust the barber to not capitalize on that.

Interviewer: When you say “vulnerable”, do you mean physically?

Genjiro: Absolutely. It would be a tragedy indeed if a man were giving another man a shave with a razor much like the one I’ll be using, and the blade slipped and slit your throat. In fact, why should we leave it off at the razor blade? I’m going to have a bunch of sharp objects near your face, and you feel relaxed and calm despite that fact because you trust me as a barber.

Interviewer: So the fact that people trust you physically allows them to open up and share with you things that they normally wouldn’t share with anyone else.

Genjiro: Correct.

Interviewer: Actually, that is an excellent segue into our next topic. Concerning what you did during the war.

Genjiro: Where would you like me to begin? [he begins to use the clippers on the interviewer’s hair, shearing bits off the back and sides, leaving it short]

Interviewer: Well, we know that you and your father, Goro, managed to keep your doors open even during the war, and that your usual clientele of high-end businessmen and people of note were replaced with various members of the Despair organizations.

Genjiro: You want me to talk about the work I did during the war, yes?

Interviewer: If you are comfortable doing so, yes.

Genjiro: Very well. But before we begin with that, how fond are you of your facial hair?

Interviewer: I like the mustache, but I’m considering losing the goatee.

Genjiro: Noted. Let’s see what we can do then. Also, you don’t want to speak for this part. I don’t want to nick you by accident. 

[Genjiro takes a small handful of shaving foam and rubs it over the interviewer’s face, making sure to cover the entire neck, cheeks, and part of the lips and chin. Afterwards, he wipes his hand off on the towel he carries, and begins stropping his straight-razor.]

Genjiro: With much of our clientele either dead or about to be, we had to shift gears. We put out a sign saying that the first shave and haircut for people wearing those god-forsaken masks were free. We had a line almost out the door that day, but it was not without purpose. We changed the setup of our in-shop cameras so we could capture the faces of every single one of our clients that day, figure out who was who. Once we closed up shop, we got in touch with one of our other clients, who was a liaison with the future foundation, and arranged a dead drop in another part of town. We tossed a paper bag in a garbage can and that was all she wrote. Turns out about fifteen of the people we serviced were spies within the Future Foundation, and about two dozen more were persons of interest. 

[Genjiro begins shaving the interviewer’s neck, each stroke long and smooth, leaving perfectly bare skin in the razor’s wake.]

Genjiro: It wasn’t long afterwards that we had despairs coming in more and more often. I even gave a shave to the former Ultimate Gangster at one point, though he kept quiet the vast majority of the time. Those that did speak, however, told me things that didn’t make much sense on their own, but were damning considering the information they gave me on other visits and bits of knowledge I picked up from other clients. Dad and I were good at keeping our ears open and putting two and two together, so we were grade-A informants with the Future Foundation for a good amount of time. About three years into the war, however, we… slipped up. One of our dead drops was compromised, and the Despairs were able to trace the IP of the flash drive back to our home. They killed Dad while I was out getting groceries, and I had to go on the run.

[Genjiro finishes up with the shave and starts trimming the interviewer’s beard and mustache with a small pair of scissors]

Genjiro: When I finally found you all, you took me in, tossed me in a cell for a couple of hours, and then released me with full apologies because someone remembered who kept sending them the documents that saved them so many lives. After the fact, they used me for interrogations. There we go. All done with that. [he finishes up the trim and pats a bit of cologne into the interviewer’s face]

Interviewer: Yes, I heard about what work you did with the interrogators. They wanted you to basically do what you were already doing, but instead do it directly for the Future Foundation, no need for dead drops.

Genjiro: And the rest, as they say, is history. Now watch. [he pulls out a collapsible mirror and opens it up to show the interviewer the end result. The interviewer is skeptical at first.]

Interviewer: The facial hair looks nice… but this is the haircut that will impress the wife?

Genjiro: I just wanted to show you how to maintain it. Have your hair laying flat like so… then just take a comb and brush it back. Everything settles into place quite beautifully. [he demonstrates the technique, and the change is miraculous. The interviewer looks five years younger with just that one motion of a comb]

Interviewer: Good god. I think this was the same haircut I had when I met Ai…

Genjiro: Like I said, she’ll love it.

Interviewer: Well, Genjiro. [the subject takes a small brush and removes any stray hairs before removing the cape and standing aside] I think it’s safe to say that you are now officially welcomed to Hope’s Peak academy. Classes start at the tail end of August.

Genjiro: Excellent. I’ll start getting my things ready.

**End Interview**


	15. The Ultimate Cowboy: Garrett Holstein

**Bio**

ULTIMATE Cowboy  
Name: Garrett Holstein  
Age: 25  
Height: 6’3”  
Weight: 243 lbs  
Blood Type: A+  
Hair: Red  
Eyes: Brown  
Likes: Guitar, horses, gun maintenance, high noon  
Dislikes: Not being understood, Dubstep

Before Tragedy: One of the first people scouted for a series of international academies like Hope’s Peak, Garrett had a rather impressive resumé to bring to the table. Born into a family of ranchers that went back to the early nineteenth century in Texas, a lot of people say that Garrett learned how to ride shortly after he learned how to walk. Not long after came the rest of the skills needed to wrangle a large herd: shooting, camping, roping, and cooking. By the time he was ten, Garrett was as good as some of the ranch hands that had been working for fifteen years. By age fifteen, he had caught the attention of Hope’s Peak for single-handedly driving a herd of sixty head of longhorns from just outside Tulsa all the way to Dallas. In addition to his various accomplishments in the herding business, he also managed to make a name for himself at shooting competitions, where he demonstrated skills with revolver, shotgun, and rifle.

During Tragedy: All around the world, there were problems cropping up. Monuments being defaced, nations being invaded and conquered by their neighbors, senseless rioting in the streets of major cities. Garrett lost friends and family in the early days, much like everyone else, but afterwards, proceeded to establish a safe space in the American heartland known only as “Sanctuary”. While the rest of the world crumbled, Garrett and his people managed to save lives and build a city almost entirely from scratch, using whatever materials they could find. As time went by, Sanctuary started to look more and more like an Old West town, complete with saloon, bank, and cowboys riding out every now and again to bring in wayward animals. By the time the Future Foundation got their feet under them, Garrett’s town prospered, and everyone looked to him as a leader in almost every field that he tried his hand at on that American frontier. When the heads of the Future Foundation found him once again, they offered him the chance to return to school, as a thank you for ensuring the safety of almost a thousand people seemingly entirely by himself. Garrett was saddened to leave Sanctuary, but they have done fine without him, providing a building model for a number of other communities that have managed to get their start nearby.

After Tragedy: The biggest obstacle that Garrett had to face was the language barrier. Due to the (comparatively) limited resources of the Future Foundation, any and all plans for overseas branches of Hope’s Peak went out the window. As such, Garrett had to go to school in the heart of Tokyo, and pick up a couple of books of basic Japanese. Even so, he finds himself in a bit of a pickle, because even though he is gaining a greater and greater understanding of the language with each passing day, Garrett still has more than two decades of experience to catch up on. Luckily, at least two of his fellow students speak his native tongue, allowing him to communicate more effectively with his fellow students. Even so, he experiences a rather acute sense of rage whenever someone makes fun of his pronunciation or goes out of their way to use increasingly complex vocabulary words in order to make him feel inferior.

Notable Features: Garrett often wears the same clothes that he would usually wear on the range. A flannel shirt, jeans, boots, gun belt, and spurs make up his usual wardrobe, with modifications such as a jacket or gloves for colder weather. To complete the ensemble is his favorite cowboy hat, a ten-gallon number done in white. His Irish heritage also comes through quite prominently in his appearance, giving him freckles across the bridge of his nose, copper-colored hair, and a small gap in between his two front teeth. He speaks with his typical Texas drawl, even when he’s not speaking in English.

_Interview 79.15 – Open_  
_Interviewer: Yamada Jiro, Psy.D_  
_Translator: Tsuchizumi Satori, former UN translator_  
_Subject: Garrett Holstein – “The Ultimate Cowboy”_  
_Interview Date: May 23rd, 8 AT (after Tragedy)_

**Observation**

[The subject is a massive man, with thick arms and a broad chest. The crown of his white cowboy hat brushes the doorframe as he steps in, and he removes it once inside. Atop his head is a mess of tousled red hair, and he smiles widely to reveal a small gap in his front teeth. The subject is wearing a blue and white plaid flannel shirt, tucked into a pair of jeans that are held up by a brown leather belt and a rather large brass belt buckle. A gun encircles his waist, a Colt .45 Python resting on his left hip. Additionally, he wears a pair of high-quality cowboy boots, spurs clicking as he walks in. He takes his seat and tucks the cowboy hat under his chair.]

**Interview**

[Transcriber’s note: all of Garrett’s speech is translated from English to Japanese, and all of Dr. Yamada’s speech is translated from Japanese to English unless otherwise stated].

Interviewer: Good morning. Please state your name and age for the record.

Garrett: [in Japanese] I am Garrett Holstein, and I am twenty five years old.

Interviewer: I appreciate your attempt to show what you have learned, but that will not be necessary. Mr. Tsuchizumi here is a former UN translator, and will ensure that you are able to speak as you normally do without fear of being misunderstood.

Garrett: Much obliged, doc. I ‘preciate it.

Interviewer: Are you aware of why Hope’s Peak was scouting you before the Tragedy?

Garrett: I reckon it was ‘cause of what I did on the range.

Interviewer: And what exactly did you do on the range?

Garrett: Whatever needed doin’, I reckon. Herdin’ cattle, rustlin’ up some grub, ridin’, ropin’, pitchin’ tents what needed pitchin’, huntin’, shootin’ coyotes that get a little too close to the herd. Usual business.

Interviewer: And how long had you been doing those kinds of things?

Garrett: Goin’ on almost seventeen years, now.

Interviewer: You’d been on the range since you were eight?

Garrett: Well, that was when I started doin’ all the long trips, the ones that took ‘bout a couple weeks to complete.

Interviewer: Impressive. And what did you do before then?

Garrett: Mostly helpin’ round the house and ranch. Learned some basic leatherworkin’, saddle repair, cobblin’ so’s I could make my own boots and what not. Tannin’ hides, you know? No part of the cow went to waste ‘round the house. Ma always made bones into soup and stock, meat was self-explanatory, Pa taught me how to work leather and horn. Learn a mighty fine bunch of skills out there.

Interviewer: And these skills helped you during the tragedy, I assume?

Garrett: You bet your boots they did. So many people didn’t even know how to do basic farmin’! that was one of the first things I learned as a young’n.

Interviewer: So you claim that your upbringing in a rural area was more of an asset than being raised in a city or a suburb?

Garrett: When we were tryin’ to build Sanctuary, it was.

Interviewer: Please tell us a little more about Sanctuary.

Garrett: I reckon it’s ‘bout… oh, say a hundred, hundred twenty five buildings, now? You got a lot of people livin’ in that city, so you have maybe one family per house, and a lot of the single folk spent their time livin’ in the hostel we built, as well as a couple 'a inns round town. Made for a rather nice livin’ situation.

Interviewer: How many people were living in Sanctuary when we discovered it?

Garrett: I reckon ‘bout a five hundred, give or take. We had somewhere ‘round fifteen other farms and ranches not too far from the town, where we raised our livestock. Lot of the farmin’ happened in town, water bein’ drawn from the springs under the town.

Interviewer: How did you find the springs? Another trick you learned on the frontier, or was it luck?

Garrett: Little bit ‘a both, actually. Some places, you see a little more green than others. Might just be a small pocket of water, might be an underground river that’s close to the surface. It’s when you see a lot ‘a green in an otherwise empty plain that you start to think that somethin’s up.

Interviewer: So it wasn’t exactly luck that you found it. You just played smart.

Garrett: If’n you can call it that.

Interviewer: So, you have this Wild West cowboy thing going on, but I have to ask: why do you carry the revolver that you do?

Garrett: It’s a big damn gun that shoots big damn bullets, and the bullets ain’t hard to come by compared to the ammo for a pearl handle.

Interviewer: Practicality?

Garrett: Nah. Practicality would be carrying around a semi-automatic pistol and using that to deal with any problems. Bigger magazine, you don’t have to cock it for every shot, and it’s a lot less likely to hit you in the face with the recoil.

Interviewer: So you carry around the Python because you want to keep the image, but don’t want to lose the weapon.

Garrett: Might be.

Interviewer: One more thing before we finish up here today. You are going to be the oldest member of this class by at least a year and some change. You were asked to hold off on joining Hope’s Peak the first time on account of your inability to speak Japanese, and would be accepted for the full three years once we finished our overseas expansion. We are no longer able to complete the overseas projects, so you will have to learn Japanese in order to fit in with your fellow students. Is this an obstacle you can overcome?

Garrett: [pauses for a moment, rubbing his chin in thought] I reckon I might.

Interviewer: Good. Welcome to Hope’s Peak academy. Classes start in September.

Garrett: [in Japanese] Thank you.

[After shaking hands with both the interviewer and the translator, Garrett stands up, tucks his thumbs into his belt, and leaves with a noticeable spring in his step.]

**End Interview**


	16. The Ultimate Architect: Kudou Jin

**Bio**

ULTIMATE Architect  
Name: Kudou Jin  
Age: 22  
Height: 5’2”  
Weight: 104  
Blood Type: B-  
Hair: White  
Eyes: Black  
Likes: Hanging upside down, the sound of a pencil on paper, the expressions on people’s faces when they see his designs  
Dislikes: being forced to work like a normal person (he’s not a salaryman for christ’s sake)

Before Tragedy: Kudou Jin was a strange case from the very start. His parents worried about him because he seemed always at risk for head injury due to how he read: his upper half hanging upside down off his bed. He translated this into how he worked on his designs, suspending himself from the ceiling using a complex series of harnesses and pulleys, allowing him to work in such a way that it allowed for angular, inverted, and outright strange designs of buildings. Several of these have been purchased and implemented by people with way too much money to construct buildings that seemed to barely serve a practical purpose, yet in truth were spacious and designed to both look ethereally beautiful and provide a unique and stimulating space.

During Tragedy: Jin didn’t have much contact with the Future Foundation until the end of the Tragedy, since so many members of the Future Foundation (including his own parents) believed he was dead. The truth of the matter was that he was wandering about in the ruins of the world, unnoticed because of his small frame, hiding in plain sight by donning the Monokuma Masks worn by so many of the fighters for Despair, and contemplating. While the world fell apart around his ears, he spent it in meditation, focused on rebuilding it with designs constructed in his mind, free of pencil and paper. When he was finally picked up by the Future Foundation, he, along with Takamori Akira, began designing buildings that served as sources of inspiration as well as excellent strongholds against Despair.

After Tragedy: One of the things that defines Jin as opposed to his classmates is how he interacts with the world. He views most all structures, natural or man-made, as either “I’m going to climb that” or “I can make that better”. This has led to a few attempts from his fellow classmates to keep him grounded, though it rarely lasts for long. His drafting gear takes up the majority of his room, including space on the wall and ceiling for him to “view things from a different angle” as he claims. Some of his classmates even go so far as to speculate that he works the way he does because he’s either part bat, or because it makes blood rush to his head, improving his ability to think.

Notable Features: Jin is probably one of the most bizarre members of the 79th class, going out of his way to climb things that really shouldn’t be climbed and wandering around in his bathrobe most of the time he’s not working. When he is working, he’s usually wearing shorts and a tank top, as well as his harness.

_Interview 79.16 – Open_  
_Interviewer: Yamada Jiro, Psy.D_  
_Subject: Kudou Jin – “The Ultimate Architect”_  
_Interview Date: May 24th, 8 AT (after Tragedy)_

**Observation**

[The subject is unusually muscular, considering his skill set, possessing the toned muscle of a gymnast or acrobat, he has an incredibly well-defined core that is visible against the confines of the tank top he wears. His hair is snow white and shorn close to his scalp, leaving him with a military-style buzz cut, and his eyes appear to be either white sclera or black pupil, giving him an unsettling and almost inhuman appearance. Upon entering, the only sound he makes is the soft tap of his slippers on the floor, and he appears to be wearing a pair of cargo shorts as the only other piece of clothing that he has on his person. When he takes his seat, he sits upside down, with his legs going straight up the chair’s back, his shoulders at the front of the seat cushion, and his head lolling over the edge.]

**Discussion**

Interviewer: [pauses, thrown off by the subject’s appearance] Alright then. Please state your name and age for the record.

Jin: Is this excess of pomp and circumstance absolutely necessary? [it should be noted that Jin sounds tired, though not in the way of him being legitimately exhausted. His natural tone of voice appears to be exhausted, and it barely changes from that throughout the interview]

Interviewer: It’s just a formality is all. Now, if you would, please state your name and age for the record.

Jin: [sighs] If we must, then. Kudou Jin, age twenty two. Satisfied?

Interviewer: Do you intend to make this sound like is a massive waste of your time throughout the entire interview?

Jin: Until you say something that is worthy of my interest, yes. Since you have not said anything of note as of yet.

Interviewer: Your lackadaisical attitude is frustrating, you realize that, right?

Jin: When presented with less than subpar conditions, how can I be expected to work?

Interview: You view this as a form of work?

Jin: Of course. You are here to ask me about my talent, how I built it up, and how I used it in the war against Despair, correct?

Interviewer: Have you spoken to your other classmates already?

Jin: Of course not. You’re just that predictable.

Interviewer: Are you always this rude?

Jin: No. Not usually.

Interviewer: So why the impoliteness?

Jin: Working conditions, as I said.

Interviewer: And what about these working conditions makes them so terrible?

Jin: It is far too bright in here, for one. For another, I am so… limited in motion. I feel so perpetually grounded by the conventions of this room.

Interviewer: You feel that you are able to work best when you are able to move?

Jin: Not just move… I need to be able to fly.

Interviewer: So you view your act of design as a form of flight?

Jin: The designs are just a by-product of the flight. If I am able to fly, then I am able to create. One leads to the other, and that is why you call me the Ultimate Architect.

Interviewer: When you say “fly”, you are referring to the harnesses and straps that you often use to suspend yourself off the ground, correct?

Jin: Those devices are forms of art all on their own. With them, I can ascend like an angel and remain as such for an eternity.

Interviewer: I would actually like to ask you a question about your suspension for a moment. Is it true that you have multiple harnesses that place stress on different parts of your body and hold you in different positions?

Jin: Stagnation is the death of all art.

Interviewer: There are rumors that you even have one for sleep, is that correct?

Jin: It allows me to fly even in rest, a necessity for those that would create at any hours.

Interviewer: You give incredibly cryptic answers for simple yes or no questions.

Jin: Do you find issue with that notion?

Interviewer: Honestly? I find it a little refreshing compared to the alternative. 

Jin: You’ve dealt with the alternative recently, then, I assume.

Interviewer: I am not at liberty to say due to confidentiality.

Jin: I shall allow my mind to make up its own answer, then… its answer is “Yes”.

Interviewer: I neither confirm nor deny this notion. However, I will point out something that I discovered that I find at least a little interesting.

Jin: What would that be?

Interviewer: You’ve stopped insulting me, despite these “subpar working conditions”.

Jin: You’ve brought up subjects which are relevant to my interests. I cannot be rude to you for that. 

Interviewer: You also use a rather wide range of vocabulary, preferring multisyllabic synonyms for simple answers. Is there a reason for that.

Jin: I envy silence because I must be loud.

Interviewer: So you don’t like uncomfortable silence, is that it?

Jin: Any silence can be comfortable if you enjoy the quiet enough.

Interviewer: You’re skirting the question.

Jin: And?

Interviewer: Is it safe to say that you’re going to be this evasive about the subject no matter which topic I bring up from here on out?

Jin: I believe that to be an accurate assessment, yes.

Interviewer: Fine, then I’ll only ask one more question. Do you want to go to Hope’s Peak Academy?

Jin: It will provide a space for me to continue my work with no other expectations placed on me by my instructors or society. So yes.

Interviewer: Great. Classes start in September. See you then.

**End Interview**

_Interviewer’s note: That was almost as infuriating as the interview with Sueoka Hideo. We must really be scraping the bottom of the barrel if it means working with such frustrating individuals for the next four years. Still. That’s the last of the list. Just please, don’t assign me as their homeroom instructor. I’d rather continue to scout for the next group of students._


End file.
